West Bengal BJP leader shot dead at Shaktigarh

The Purba Bardhaman district police are investigating the matter, and on Saturday forensic experts collected evidence from the scene of the crime.

West Bengal Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and businessman Raju Jha was shot dead at Shaktigarh in Purba Bardhaman district on a national highway late on Saturday evening. The deceased was on the way to Kolkata when unidentified gunmen arrived in a car and shot at the SUV in which the BJP leader was travelling.

The murder of the BJP leader who was involved in coal and hotel business sparked a political slugfest in the State with the Opposition parties raising questions of law and order situation. The Purba Bardhaman district police are investigating the matter, and on Saturday forensic experts collected evidence from the scene of the crime.

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BJP MLA from Durgapur Lakshman Chandra Ghorui said that Mr. Jha had joined the BJP but had not been active in the party recently. “What happened in Howrah and then the murder of a citizen of the State is an indication that the State’s law and order situation has collapsed,” State BJP president Sukanta Majumdar said.

Trinamool Congress Rajya Sabha MP Shantanu Sen said that everyone was aware that the deceased person was “involved in coal smuggling” in the State. Trinamool leaders alleged that he had joined the saffron party to escape investigation by Central agencies. According to reports, senior State BJP leaders had held meetings at hotels owned by Mr. Jha. On March 30, two Trinamool Congress supporters were killed at Chopra subdivision in Uttar Dinajpur district over an alleged dispute on who will get tickets in panchayat polls.

Also read: Violence erupts in Howrah over Ram Navami procession

While the situation in Howrah was limping back to normalcy after the violence on March 30 there was a fresh flare-up in Hooghly district on Sunday evening. BJP national vice-president Dilip Ghosh was leading a religious procession in Hooghly district’s Rishra town when clashes erupted. The police quickly took the BJP leader to a safe spot. A few motorbikes were attacked by miscreants and set on fire.