Local Trinamool leader shot dead in Bengal, BJP alleges internal rift behind murder

A booth convenor of the Trinamool Congress was shot dead in Bankura district of West Bengal on Monday night, triggering political tensions between the ruling party and the opposition BJP.

Police identified the victim as Sekender Khan, also known as Sayan Khan. According to officials, he was returning home on a motorcycle from the local market around 10 pm when assailants opened fire from the banks of a canal near the entrance to his village in Sonamukhi block.

Khan was hit in the back and head, causing him to fall off the bike and die on the spot.

The incident has heightened tensions in Sonamukhi, an area that has reportedly been witnessing factional disputes within the Trinamool Congress for nearly a year.

On March 2 this year, two rival groups of the party clashed, leaving one leader injured. Monday’s killing comes less than six months after that incident.

Police recovered Khan’s body and sent it to Sonamukhi Rural Hospital. Senior Trinamool leaders, including Bishnupur organisational district president Subrata Dutta and Sonamukhi municipal chairman Santosh Mukherjee, visited the hospital late at night.

The Trinamool Congress accused the BJP, in alleged coordination with the Communist Party of India Marxist (CPM), of orchestrating the murder to destabilise the area ahead of the 2026 West Bengal Assembly elections. Party leaders claimed the BJP feared defeat in the Sonamukhi seat.

Rejecting the charges, the local BJP MLA asserted that the party had no role in the killing, alleging instead that it stemmed from internal disputes within the Trinamool over land distribution.

Police are investigating the case, while no arrests have been reported so far. Security has been stepped up in the area to prevent further unrest.

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