A local BSP leader was shot dead in the Mehnagar police station area in this Uttar Pradesh district allegedly over an old rivalry, police said on Tuesday.
Motorcycle-borne attackers opened fire on Kalamuddin Khan late on Monday evening, when he was sitting in front of his house. The 60-year-old was rushed to the community health centre in Lalganj and was subsequently taken to a Varanasi hospital in a serious condition, where he was declared dead, the police said.
An FIR has been lodged against six people, including a former village head. Three of the suspects in the case have been arrested. Four police teams have been formed and raids are being carried out to nab the other culprits. An old enmity is being considered the cause behind the attack, Superintendent of Police (SP) Sudhir Kumar Singh said.
The deceased also had a criminal record. A total of six cases were registered against him, including two that of murder, the SP said, adding that these days, he was living in Lucknow along with his son and working as a property dealer. Khan had returned here on Sunday.
Khan had contested the Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls on a Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) ticket twice.
With inputs from PTI
