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Two days after the killing of six Rajasthani labourers in Bihar's Bhojpur district by the Ranveer Sena, nearly a hundred others have fled the state fearing for their lives, official sources said on Thursday.
Most of the labourers, who were working on the Sone canal modernisation project, deserted their work places on Wednesday and headed for their native villages, district officials confirmed.
Most of them were skilled tractor operators. They have taken their tractors, about 35 in number, along with them.
Armed Ranveer Sena men had on Sunday killed six of their colleagues. The deceased were natives of Dingana village in Rajasthan's Jodhpur district.
Police have arrested seven persons, including a Ranveer Sena area commander Awadh Kumar Pandey, in this connection.
Some days before the killings took place, the assailants had told the labourers to pay Rs 200,000 as 'rangdari tax' (a form of extortion) or return to Rajasthan.
The killings created panic among the other Rajasthani labourers working in the district for the last few months.
The frightened labourers have chosen to ignore repeated assurances of adequate security by the district administration.
This was the first incident when labourers from outside Bihar were killed in the state.
The state government has decided to depute a Special Task Force in the district to prevent recurrence of such incidents. The district police have also been told to keep a close watch on suspicious persons and incidents.
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