Patna (Bihar) [India], July 20 (ANI): Bihar Additional Director General of Police (ADG) Kundan Krishnan has issued a public apology after facing backlash over his recent remarks suggesting a link between increased murders and the farming community.

In a clarification shared via a video posted on the official handle of Bihar Police on platform X, Krishnan stated that his comments were misrepresented and that he did not intend to associate farmers with crime. He further said that the crimes are committed by criminals, and they don't have a religion or caste.

'My statements were distorted and presented, which led to a controversy... I did not mean to say that our farmers have anything to do with crimes happening in the state and the country. They are and will always remain respectable. My ancestors were also farmers, and as a result, I have deep relations with farmers and especially those in my village. Crimes are committed by criminals, and they do not have a caste or religion. I respect farmers, but still, if my statements have hurt anybody, I express my regret and seek apologies,' ADG Krishnan said.

His remarks linking increasing crime incidents with farmers created massive controversy, inviting criticism from across the board. On July 16, the 1994 batch Bihar cadre IPS officer said that most murders happen in the months of April, May and June since farmers don't have work.

'Recently, a lot of murders have happened in the entire Bihar. Most murders happen in the months of April, May and June. This continues until the rains come, as most farmers do not have work. After the rains, people in the farming community get busy, and the incidents reduce... So we have formed a new cell this month. The work of that cell will be to create a database of all the former shooters, contract killers and keep an eye on them,' the ADG had said.

Expressing concern over the law and order situation in Bihar, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) MP Manoj Kumar Jha launched a scathing attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday, accusing him of building 'a mountain of lies'.

Jha questioned the Prime Minister's silence on crime incidents occurring in the state. He said that there have been 37 incidents of murder in Bihar in the last 15 days. The RJD leader said that PM Modi sends a fact-finding team to West Bengal and Telangana, but 'puts cello tap' when it comes to Bihar.

'PM Modi, you have built a mountain of lies. You won't see Manipur and Bihar. In 15 days, 37 incidents of murder occurred in Bihar. What happened to Muzaffarpur's daughter? You didn't send a fact-finding team like you did to West Bengal and Telangana. The Prime Minister must dispatch fact-finding teams to areas where there are issues of law and order. Whenever something happens in Bihar, you put up cello tape and the teleprompter goes blank,' Jha told ANI.

His remarks come after Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday expressed anger over atrocities against women in West Bengal, citing the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital rape-murder incident, where he claimed that the Trinamool Congress (TMC) government in West Bengal was shielding the culprits. (ANI)