Brij Behari Prasad, also spelled Brij Bihari Prasad (died 13 June 1998) was an Indian politician. A member of the

Rashtriya Janata Dal The Rashtriya Janata Dal ( RJD; translation: National People's Party) is an Indian political party, mainly based in the state of Bihar. The party was founded in 1997 by Lalu Prasad Yadav. The party's support base has traditionally been Other ...

(RJD) (then

Janata Dal Janata Dal () was an List of political parties in India, Indian political party which was formed through the merger of Lok Dal, Indian National Congress (Jagjivan), and the Jan Morcha on 11 October 1988—the birth anniversary of Jayaprakash Na ...

), Prasad served as Minister for Science and Technology in the

Government of Bihar Bihar Government is the State governments of India, state government of the States and territories of India, Indian state of Bihar and its nine Divisions of Bihar, divisions which consist of Districts of Bihar, districts. It consists of an execut ...

. He was arrested for alleged involvement in corrupt admissions to technical institutes and was murdered on 13 June 1998 at the

Indira Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences Indira Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences, an Institute under State Legislature Act (Government), was established on 19 November 1983 as an autonomous organisation on the pattern of All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi. It is one ...

Patna Patna (; , ISO 15919, ISO: ''Paṭanā''), historically known as Pataliputra, Pāṭaliputra, is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and largest city of the state of Bihar in India. According to the United Nations, ...

, where he was undergoing treatment . It was claimed that his death was in retribution for his involvement in assassination of

gangster A gangster (informally gangsta) is a criminal who is a member of a gang. Most gangs are considered to be part of organized crime. Gangsters are also called mobsters, a term derived from ''Organized crime, mob'' and the suffix ''wikt:-ster, -st ...

Chhottan Shukla and five other people, who were killed on 4 December 1994, while returning home from a campaign organised in context of 1995 Bihar Legislative Assembly elections. Shukla was a gangster from the

Bhumihar Bhumihar, also locally called Bhuinhar and Babhan, a Hindu Indian caste system, caste mainly found in Bihar (including the Mithila (region), Mithila region), the Purvanchal region of Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, the Bundelkhand region of Madhya ...

community, whereas Prasad was a Bania. Supporters of Prasad were thought to be responsible for the killing of Shukla.

Political career

Prasad served as science and technology minister in

Rabri Devi Rabri Devihttp://ceobihar.nic.in/election/GeneralElection2014/PC20/S04-Bihar-20--May-2014%20(%20GEN%20)-3-RABRI%20DEVI.PDFhttps://cdn.s3waas.gov.in/s3285e19f20beded7d215102b49d5c09a0/uploads/2023/05/2023051796.pdf ( Devanagri: राबड़ी ...

's government and also as energy minister in

government in Bihar. He was known for his muscleman image and was popular among OBCs in his constituency. A close aide of

Lalu Prasad Yadav Lalu Prasad (born 11 June 1948) is an Indian politician who served as the chief minister of Bihar from 1990 to 1997 with a brief interruption in 1995 and as the union minister for Railways from 2004 to 2009. He is the founder and president o ...

, the influence of Prasad was often used by the

to change the voting behaviour in the areas of his influence. The use of money and muscle power was evident in those days and various political parties including the

Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party, or simply the Congress, is a political parties in India, political party in India with deep roots in most regions of India. Founded on 28 December 1885, it was the first mo ...

relied upon criminal politicians to ensure victory. Prasad was allegedly involved in the assassination of Devendranath Dubey, a

Samajwadi Party The Samajwadi Party ( SP; ) is a Socialism, socialist political party in India. It was founded on 4 October 1992 by former Janata Dal politician Mulayam Singh Yadav and is headquartered in New Delhi. It is the third-largest political party in ...

MLA and member of Motihari Lok Sabha constituency in 1996. The assassination preceded winning of Motihari constituency election by Prasad's Rama Devi. Dubey himself was a proclaimed absconder while Prasad was facing several criminal charges. The influence of Prasad was witnessed from east

Champaran Champaran is a region in Bihar, India. It is now divided into two districts: East Champaran and West Champaran. History Champaran is identified with the ''Champāraṇya'' mentioned in the Bheraghat inscription as a place "devastated" b ...

Muzaffarpur Muzaffarpur () is a city located in Muzaffarpur district on the banks of Burhi Gandak River, Burhi Gandak river in the Tirhut division of the Indian state of Bihar. It serves as the headquarters of the Tirhut division, the Muzaffarpur distri ...

district of Bihar. Author Ranbir Sammadar credits him for ending the crime empire of Devendra Dubey—the

leader who later shifted his allegiance to Samajwadi Party. According to local media outlets of Bihar, Prasad ensured the victory of several backward caste candidates against the upper-caste strongmen who dominated their respective constituencies due to their influence and muscle power. These include Munna Shukla, who was defeated by Prasad's nominee Kedar Gupta and Raghunath Pandey who was defeated by Bijendra Chowdhary from Muzaffarpur constituency. The nominees of Prasad viz Basawan Bhagat, Maheswar Yadav and Ramvichar Rai also emerged victorious from their respective constituencies. The climax of his political influence was witnessed after his wife, Rama Devi defeated Radha Mohan Singh from Motihari.

Assassination

Prasad was also known for his rivalry with Chhotan Shukla— a gangster and leader of Bihar People's Party of

Anand Mohan Singh Anand Mohan Singh (born 28 January 1954) is a politician and founder of the now-defunct Bihar People's Party (BPP). He served life imprisonment for instigating killing of Gopalganj district magistrate, G. Krishnaiah in 1994. In April 2023, Go ...

. Shukla was killed while he was returning from his election campaign by the goons, who were allegedly working for Prasad. Prasad was earlier arrested for his alleged involvement in BECEE scam, and was getting treatment in Indira Gandhi Institute of Medical Science,

. While he was taking a stroll outside his ward surrounded by the commandos of Bihar military police, a man approached him for getting his favour in proper treatment of his relative. Prasad ordered one of his men to talk to a doctor to ensure proper treatment to the man's relative, and moved towards a badly lit corner of parking space. While the commandos approached him towards the parking space, an ambassador car stopped near him and a few unidentified gunmen opened fire upon Prasad and his men. Prasad and three personnel were shot dead on the spot and another one ran away. The dead also included his personal bodyguard, Lahmeshwar Shah, who was also killed on the spot.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Prasad, Brij Behari 1998 deaths Rashtriya Janata Dal politicians Indian murder victims Crime in Bihar Caste-related violence in Bihar People murdered in Bihar Deaths by firearm in India People from East Champaran district Indian politicians assassinated in the 20th century 1998 murders in India Janata Dal politicians State cabinet ministers of Bihar Asian politicians assassinated in the 1990s Bihar MLAs 1995–2000 Politicians assassinated in 1998

Political career

Assassination

See also

References