NEW DELHI, 7 October 2005 — Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President Lal Krishna Advani condemned the attack on former union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad at an election rally in Bihar yesterday, saying there was complete breakdown of law and order in the state.

The attack was also condemned by the Election Commission, with the Chief Election Commissioner B.B. Tandon expressing concern at the attack.

“The Election Commission should take steps for proper conduct of polls in the state,” Advani said referring to the shooting incident at the election rally in Nokha near Sasaram in Bihar that injured Prasad.

“The attack on the BJP leader just highlights the fact that the situation in Bihar is a matter of concern for all those who would like to have free and fair elections in the state,” Advani added.

BJP general secretary Arun Jaitley said the incident had raised serious concerns over security in the state in the run-up to the assembly elections.

“There is a breakdown in law and order in the state. The entire security set-up needs to be reviewed and proper measures need to be put in place,” he said.

Bihar is scheduled to hold assembly elections from Oct. 18 to Nov. 19, just seven months after the earlier polls led to a fractured legislature.

“It was an unfortunate incident. I expressed my concern to the Bihar chief secretary and asked the authorities to be more alert,” Tandon said. “The chief secretary has assured me that the incident will be inquired thoroughly.”

Even before yesterday’s incident, a delegation of National Democratic Alliance (NDA) leaders met with the Election Commission urging the election panel to beef up security at polling booths, especially those located in Maoist areas.

BJP Vice President Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said that his party had been constantly warning the Election Commission about the violence being unleashed in the state against opposition parties and the lax security set-up.

“The attack also shows the nervousness of the forces opposed to the BJP and NDA, which are way ahead of them in the run up to the elections,” Naqvi said.

Prasad, a former information and broadcasting minister, was taken to a Patna hospital, after being shot at during the rally at Nokha. Doctors in Patna removed a bullet from his left hand. He was stated to be out of danger.

Police suspect Prasad was shot at by a youth who apparently wanted to target the local party candidate, Rameshwar Prasad Chaurasia, but missed. The bullet hit the BJP leader instead. Angry BJP workers reportedly lynched the attacker, but this could not be immediately confirmed.

BJP general secretary Pramod Mahajan was also present at the rally. He later said his former ministerial colleague Prasad was out of danger.

In another development, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) MP Mohammad Shahabuddin was yesterday debarred from entering the Siwan district — till Dec 20 in connection with a criminal case — for the second time.

Siwan District Magistrate Santosh Kumar Mal, who had reserved his order after completion of hearing in a case relating to booking Shahabuddin under the Control of Crime Act, has issued the order in view of the fact that Shahabuddin had been absconding since last month.