By IANS,
Kolkata: A CPI-M leader was killed in broad daylight by unidentified assailants in West Bengal’s South 24 Parganas district Saturday, police said.
The murder sparked off a spat between the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) and the Trinamool Congress as the Left party accused the ruling party of seeking to eliminate all its active leaders.
Iccha Gayen, 42, was murdered by group of five assailants in Kultali area of the district. He was a member of the CPI-M’s Kultali local committee.
“Iccha Gayen was murdered by a group of five assailants in Kultuli area. We have started the investigation,” district Superintendent of Police Pravin Tripathi told IANS.
The CPI-M alleged that the murder was the handiwork of assailants affiliated to Trinamool.
“The murderers are affiliated to Trinamool Congress. They have killed Iccha Gayen. It is part of their broader plan to eliminate all the active comrades of the party,” party district secretary Sujan Chakraborty said.
The Trinamool leadership, however, denied the allegations and said CPI-M was trying to implicate them with false charges.
“It is totally untrue. We have nothing to do with the murder. It is a false allegation,” said Sunderbans Development Minister Shyamal Mondal.