Man shot at from point blank range in Bengal's Jhargram, BJP blames Trinamool

A person was critically injured after he was shot at from point blank range in West Bengal's Jhargram district, police said on Sunday. The BJP blamed the Trinamool Congress for the incident, a charge denied by the ruling party.

The police have initiated an investigation and detained a villager in connection with the incident. The incident happened at Bagua village under the jurisdiction of Jamboni police station on Saturday night, the police said.

Two persons approached Khagapati Mahato, while he was attending a Kirtan (devotional song) programme, and one of them shot at him from point blank range, a police officer said.

The miscreants fled the scene immediately, he said, adding, the injured person and the miscreants are residents of Bagua village.

Khagapati Mahato was rushed to Jhargram hospital and from there he was taken to Midnapore Medical College and Hospital, the police officer said.

Later, he was referred to a hospital in Kolkata, he added.

BJP's Jhargram district president Sukhomoy Satpati alleged that the TMC supporters were involved in the incident.

"We have informed the district administration. The miscreants should be arrested immediately," he said. Denying the allegation, TMC's district core committee member Prasun Sarangi claimed that the incident happened as a result of personal problems.