Dayashankar Gupta was shot dead last nigh in UP's Firozpur.
A local BJP leader - Dayashankar Gupta - was shot dead last night allegedly by three bike-borne attackers in Uttar Pradesh's Firozabad district. His party colleague, Viresh Tomar, and two of Mr Tomar's uncles - Narendra Tomar and Devendra Tomar - have been taken into police custody in the murder case after Dayashankar Gupta's family named them as suspects and alleged political enmity.
Dayashankar Gupta, who was the Mandal vice president, was leaving after closing his shop last night when he was attacked at a local market. He was rushed to a nearby hospital.
Viresh Tomar had recently joined the BJP, locals said, adding that Dayashankar Gupta was not happy with this.
"Viresh Tomar recently had a heated exchange with Dayashankar on Facebook. Viresh Tomar's uncle had earlier contested local village body election from Ratigarhi village in Firozabad against Dayashanker, and he had won the election," police officer A Satish Ganesh said.
Soon after the killing last night, a protest by some family members and supporters broke out near the hospital - where he was rushed - as they demanded arrest of the accused. Some protesters also tried to block a road in Agra.
"Some unknown men targeted the BJP leader in the marketplace. We are carrying out a probe. We talked to the protesters to calm them down. We are aiming for a breakthrough in the next 24 hours," police officer Mukesh Kumar Mishra told reporters late last night.
"He (DK Gupta) was attacked after he had closed shop. The family members have given the name of some suspects. We are conducting a probe," Shachindranath Nath Patel, another cop, said.
A video showed policemen talking to those protesting the killing. Visuals also showed the cops trying to clear up the roads.