TMC member shot dead in West Bengal's Coochbehar

Kolkata, Aug 9 (PTI) A TMC member was shot dead in West Bengal's Coochbehar district on Saturday, police said.
    The deceased, identified as Amar Roy (31), was out to buy chicken when he was shot from a point-blank range in Dodeyar Haat area in Pundimari, they said.
    His mother, Kuntala Roy, is the pradhan of the Dowaguri panchayat. Roy himself was a known face of the party's youth wing in the area, but it could not be immediately known if he held any post in the organisation.
    The incident, which happened in a crowded weekly market in broad daylight, triggered a panic among the people.
    Roy was immediately taken to a nearby hospital, where he was declared dead. His companion was also shot, but his condition is stated to be out of danger, police said.
    TMC's state vice president Rabindranath Ghosh, who is also the chairperson of the Coochbehar Municipality, alleged that the BJP was behind the murder as it wants to create an atmosphere of terror in the area.
    The BJP dismissed the allegation, claiming that the murder was a result of TMC's internal feud.
    Protesting the murder, TMC activists blocked the arterial Pundimari-Chakchaka Road, disrupting traffic.
    Police said they are trying to ascertain the identities of those behind the murder and have lodged a case.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)