On 2 March 2011, a group of armed men arrived at the residence of Mr. Niyamat Ansari, who had been actively advocating for the protection of workers' rights in the locality of Jerua, Kope village, searching for Mr. Ansari. Mr. Ansari had also been closely involved in documenting alleged cases of corruption pertaining to the implementation of the Mahatma Gandhi Natural Employment Guarantee Act. It was reported that the group of armed men took Mr. Ansari away and severely beat him for up to one hour; then left the village. Mr. Ansari's family members found Mr. Ansari unconscious, and carried him on foot over a distance of ten kilometres to the nearest police station in Manika. An ambulance was then arranged to bring Mr. Ansari to Latehar Sadar Hospital. It was reported that Mr. Ansari died shortly after arriving at the hospital as a result of injuries sustained during the beating. The group of armed men had also sought Mr. Bukhan Singh, who is Mr. Andari's associate, but he managed to flee and hide. On 3 March 2011, the police of Latehar recorded a First Information Report regarding the killing of Mr. Ansari. The report allegedly contains statements made by Mr. Ansari's sister who claimed that seven private local contractors, as well as Mr. X, a local Maoist leader of the Koel Sankh zone of the Communist Party of India of Pratappur block in Chatra district, were involved in the killing of her brother. According to the information received, only one of the seven local contractors has been arrested by local police. On the same day, Mr. Singh went to the police station of Manika, which offered him protection. He had to flee his village Jerua with his wife and two sons, and the police settled him in a room in a Government building. On 5 March 2011, two local newspapers, Prabhat Khabar and Dainik Bhaskar, published a statement on behalf of the South Latehar Sub-zonal Committee of the Communist Party of India. The committee reportedly claimed responsibility for the killing of Mr. Ansari, and also issued a warning to Mr. Singh, stating that if he continued to avail of police protection, he would also be killed. On 21 March 2011, Mr. Singh reportedly stated, in an interview with the New Delhi newspaper, The Telegraph, that the killing of Mr. Ansari was directly linked to his efforts to promote the implementation of the Mahatma Gandhi Rural Employment Guarantee. Mr. Singh also reportedly stated that if the killing of Mr. Ansari was not adequately investigated by local police, he would request that a central agency take over the case. Such a move is provided for under Section 27 (2) of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act.