A BJP booth-level worker in West Bengal’s Birbhum district was allegedly shot dead on Sunday evening and the incident raised questions as to what could cause the killing. The deceased was Chandan Bhalla, 46, in the booth level.
Bhalla was in touch with BJP at the booth level at that time of the day, the police said. Birbhum Superintendent of Police Vidit Raj Bhundesh said preliminary information indicated that Bhalla was shot but it would be known when the post-mortem examination was done.
Police are now working to find and arrest those behind the attack, they said. CCTV footage from the vicinity was being examined to find out who these attackers are and what they’re doing now. People speaking anonymously claimed that someone on a motorcycle was involved in the shooting and fled the area after the attack.
Police have not yet confirmed the identity of the attackers or a motive for the killing.
The circumstances of Bhalla’s movements before the shooting also have been investigated. Family members said that Bhalla received a phone call from an unknown person before leaving his home Sunday evening. His wife Shyamali Bhalla said he was in the land-selling business, and had left home on his motorcycle to show a plot to someone who wants to buy it.
According to reports, the shooting happened on a road in the Trishulapatty area of Bolpur. Residents rushed to the area after the incident and Bhalla was taken to a nearby hospital where he was declared dead. The assailants came on a motorcycle and fired close to the victim on a motorcycle and ran away, some reports said.
Police have been collecting evidence and checking available CCTV recordings and footage from the scene in the meantime.
The motive behind the killing is still not clear. Bhalla’s family has put forward the idea that there is a political angle in the killing; his elder brother Gour Chandra Bhalla even told local media some BJP members from Nanoor are to blame. But this is a family allegation and the police are looking into it. A number of possible motives are being examined by police to determine if the killing was politically motivated or was a personal dispute.
Local BJP leaders are reacting to the shooting. Shyamapada Mondal, the BJP's Bolpur district organisation director, said Bhalla was a long-time and active party worker and called for swift police action. He said the police administration needed to take action within 24 hours.
As Bhalla was associated with local BJP organisation, his death has attracted attention. According to some reports he was a booth-level functionary and in some accounts a booth president. Political association has become one of the issues that has been discussed in the discussion of the incident. But investigators have not yet officially concluded that his political activities were the reason he was targeted.
Police will rely on CCTV footage, forensic evidence and testimony from family members, local residents and other witnesses to verify the sequence of events. Bhalla’s phone call was also linked to the shooting; investigators will need to know whether Bhalla’s phone call before he left home was connected to the shooting. The identity and motive of the attackers remain key questions in the case.
The killing is happening at a time when political violence remains a sensitive issue in West Bengal, where attacks have been made on local workers by rival political parties that have frequently led to political discord. But in the present case, the police investigation is still in its embryonic phase, and no conclusions on the motive or culprits have yet been made.
For now, investigators want to find the attackers and know exactly what happened before and after the shooting. The post-mortem examination will provide further information on the cause of death, and CCTV and other evidence may help detectives to find suspects. Until the investigation is complete, it is not yet clear what the motive or involvement of any individual is– at least until now.
So Chandan Bhalla’s death has raised more questions for investigators, from the report that he was not aware of the anonymous phone call he received before leaving home to the identity of the motorcycle-borne attackers and the reason for the attack and why he was targeted. Police are investigating and more developments are expected as detectives question people involved with the case.
