Trinamool Congress worker shot dead, 10 injured ahead of panchayat polls in West Bengal

A Trinamool Congress worker was shot dead on Saturday and several other members of the party and Opposition outfits were injured in separate incidents of violence in panchayat poll-bound West Bengal, reported PTI.

The polls will be held in a single phase on July 8 and votes will be counted on July 11. With the fresh death, 10 persons have been killed so far in in poll-related violence in the state since the filing of nominations for the rural elections began on June 9, PTI reported, citing police reports.

The Trinamool Congress worker, identified as 52-year-old Jiyarul Molla, was attacked at Phulmalancha area of Basanti town in South 24 Parganas district while he was returning home, PTI reported.

Molla’s daughter Manwara Molla, who is the Trinamool Congress party candidate in Kathalberia gram panchayat seat, alleged that her father had complained to the police about frequent threats from a rival faction of the party that had asked him to quit politics.

“I am a first-time candidate,” Manwara Molla told the news agency. “My candidature is not liked by another local faction in the party. I demand a high-level probe into the incident.”

In another incident, Trinamool Congress candidate from Chaltaberia gram panchayat, Ibrahim Mollah, sustained serious injuries after he...

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