Midnapore (WB):
Ahead of a three-day shutdown called by tribal in Jungle Mahal, suspected Maoists on Saturday night gunned down a CPM zonal committee member and a grocery shopowner associated with CPM party at Jhargram and Goaltore respectively in west Midnapore district.
The police said CPM leader Jaladhar Mahato (50) was shot dead by armed Maoists while returning home in Jhargram on a motorcycle from Adarisole.
He died on the spot when the attackers stopped his motorcycle at Brindapur jungle and shot him from close range, the police said.
In a separate incident at Goaltore near Lalgarh, Maoists killed Ashok Ghosh (40), a grocery shopowner closely associated with CPI-M party at about 8.30 pm.
Eyewitness told the police that four armed Maoists dragged Ghosh out of his shop in the marketplace and shot five bullets in his head and abdomen.
The attackers fled into the nearby jungles immediately after attacking him as the incident happened within a kilometer of Goaltore police station.
District Magistrate Narayan Swarup Nigam said that Ghosh died on the spot and the police have launched a manhunt for the attackers.
Goaltore was recently "cleared" of Maoists by CRPF and state armed police. Sources said the roads have been secured from the attack of Maoists but large areas in the jungle remains to be sanitised.
On July 10, two CPM supporters Baren Mahato and Gurucharan Mahato of Sisri village near Lalgarh were kidnapped and killed by Maoists.
On July 14, Maoists had killed Tarini Deb Singh, a former CPM member who left the party to join the People's Committee against Police Atrocities (PCPA), and Swapan Deb Singh, an active member of Trinamool Congress.
Meanwhile, throwing a challenge to the administration, wanted PCPA leader, Chhatradhar Mahato called a 3-day shutdown in tribal areas of Jungle Mahal comprising West Midnapore, Bankura and Purulia districts from tomorrow to protest against "police atrocities" during the operations by security forces since June 19.
Maoists have given another shutdown call in the three districts on July 22.
Mahato, who is spearheading the tribal movement in the region as convenor of PCPA said he had sought moral support and cooperation of Left Front partners RSP and Forward Bloc to project their demand.
Mahato said he spoke over telephone with Forward Bloc state secretary Ashok Ghosh and RSP senior leader Manoj Bhattacharya who asked him to take the matter at their respective party levels.
West Midnapore DM Nigam said the administration was keeping a close watch on the situation.