Former mayor's son shot dead in park

Kolkata The son of former Mayor of Asansol, Bamapada Mukherjee, was shot dead at Burnpur stadium in West Bengal's Burdwan district Thursday.

According to police officials, the victim, Arpan Mukherjee, 50, had gone for a jog around 5am when he was shot at point blank range. He was taken to hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Mukherjee's father had been a MLA of the Communist Party of India Marxist (CPM) and former Mayor of Asansol. The victim was apparently involved in the property industry. Police suspect he may have been a victim of business rivalry.

However, the incident sparked tension in Burnpur, where public buses went off the road. Being the son of a former party MLA, the CPM considers Arpan Mukherjee to be one of the party members.

12-hour strike

To protest against the killing, the party threatened to call a 12-hour strike today, if police failed to make any arrests. CPM alleged that Arpan was killed by TMC hired guns as he was now directly getting involved in politics. "He was an upcoming leader. His father now over 90 years of age was very popular and since he can't give time due to ill health, his son was taking over the mantle which was seen as a threat by the opposition and he was killed," said a CPM leader.