Just three days ahead of the first phase of Chhattisgarh elections, a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader was killed allegedly by Naxalites on Saturday in Narayanpur district in poll-bound Chhattisgarh, reported PTI. This is the sixth killing of a BJP leader by suspected Naxalites in Maoist-hit areas of the Congress-ruled state.
Ratan Dubey, the BJP’s Narayanpur district unit vice president, was hacked to death with a sharp edged weapon at Kaushalnagar village at around 5 30 PM when he was campaigning for the upcoming polls, Additional Superintendent of Police Hemsagar Sidar said.
The incident took place under the jurisdiction limits of Jharaghati police station.
Following the incident, a police team had rushed to the spot, and his body was bought to Narayanpur town. Sidar said, “Security forces have launched an operation in the area to trace the unidentified assailants.”
Dubey was a member of Narayanpur Zilla Panchayat and Maal Vahan Parivahan Sangh of the district.
According to an eyewitness, when Dubey was addressing a gathering of people, two persons came out of the crowd and attacked him on his head from behind.
“Dubey ran towards his car and tried to get inside but a few more persons surrounded him and attacked him with sharp edged weapons leading to his death on the spot. The incident led to chaos. BJP workers later rushed to the police station located around 5 kilometres away from the site,” he said, as quoted by PTI.
Narayanpur Superintendent of Police Pushkar Sharma said that no information was given to police about Dubey’s visit.
The incident comes amid accusations by the opposition BJP of “targeted killings” of its workers in the run up to the polls.
Condoling the demise of the BJP leader, Chief Minister Raman Singh wrote in a post on X, “The Congress, which is continuously carrying out targeted killing of our comrades with the aim of influencing the assembly elections and intimidating the BJP, should understand that the BJP is not afraid. The people of Chhattisgarh are with us. Very soon every criminal along with the Naxalites will be made to pay for their crimes and hung upside down.”
State BJP chief Arun Sao attacked the ruling Congress and said the Narayanpur incident is a new episode in the series of “targeted killings” that is continuing under the patronage of the Bhupesh Baghel government.
Narayanpur is among the 20 Assembly seats where polls will be held on November 7.
Last month, the BJP had lodged a complaint with the Election Commission of India seeking action in the Manpur incident, where a BJP worker named Birju Taram was shot dead allegedly by Maoists in Sarkheda village in Mohla-Manpur-Ambagarh Chowki district.
It had also sought deployment of Central forces in “sensitive” and “highly sensitive” polling stations of Naxal affected areas during the Assembly polls.
Chhattisgarh will vote in two phases – November 7 nd 17 and counting of votes will be on December 3.