Gonda News: A local Samajwadi Party leader was killed at his residence in Uttar Pradesh's Gonda on Friday night.
Om Prakash Singh, 45, was a member of the Samajwadi Party who had unsuccessfully contested the municipal council elections last year and his rival, a Bharatiya Janata Party councillor has been accused by Singh's family of the murder, reported the Times of India.
According to the police, the assailants slit his throat and severed his leg, leaving him in a critical condition, as per the TOI report.
The SP leader, a resident of Rajatola in Parsapur, contested the municipal council polls in May 2023 but was defeated, said the police. Since then, he has been embroiled in a feud with his opponent, Lallan Singh, who won the polls on a BJP ticket.
Om Prakash was getting a new house constructed in front of his old one, where masons and labourers were working. Around 11:30 pm on Friday, four people attacked him with sharp weapons while he was sleeping on a cot. The assailants slit his throat and severed his leg, the police said.
Alerted by his screams, people rushed to the scene, but the assailants fled the spot.
Colonelganj circle officer, Chandra Pal Sharma said that one of the attackers, Chandan Singh, has been arrested and intensive efforts are on the arrest Lallan Singh and three other complices.
An FIR was registered based on a complaint by Om Prakash's wife. Five people were booked in the FIR including the BJP councillor, his three sons, reported news agency PTI.
A post-mortem examination was conducted after which the mortal remains of the victim were handed over to the family. The family members, however, staged a protest on Saturday morning, refusing to perform last rites. Placing the dead body on the road, the family said that last rites would be performed only after the accused were arrested, police said.
Following the protest, senior SP leader Yogesh Pratap Singh, former MLA Baijnath Dubey, and other party leaders reached his house and demanded fair and immediate action.