Samajwadi Party leader, son shot dead in UP's Sambhal; 2 held

Sambhal (UP), May 19: A Samajwadi Party leader and his son were shot dead in Shamshoi village here on Tuesday after a dispute with a group of villagers over the construction of a road, following which two persons were arrested, police said.

The two who have been arrested are among eight people who have been booked in connection with the double murder, they said.

Chhotelal Diwakar (50) and his son Sunil Kumar (28) were shot dead due to a dispute over the construction of a road under the rural employment generation scheme MGNREGS in the village, Superintendent of Police (SP) Yamuna Prasad said.

The incident took place under the Bahjoi police station area here, he said. The bodies have been sent for autopsy, the officer said. Following a complaint by the victim's second son Sachin Kumar, an FIR has been lodged against eight people, including two unidentified persons, under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including 302 (murder), Prasad said.

Two of those named in the FIR -- Jitendra Sharma and Sharmendra Sharma -- have been arrested. The others named in the FIR are Ramendra, Upendra, Gyandendra and Gajendra Singh, he said.

Efforts are being made to arrest the remaining accused, he added. Former Samajwadi Party MP Dharmendra Yadav condemned the incident and said Diwakar was a dedicated party worker.

He was given the Samajwadi Party ticket from the Chandausi Vidhan Sabha seat in the 2017 assembly elections, but the seat later went to the SP's alliance partner. Yadav accused the BJP government in the state and the police of sheltering criminals.

"After the murder of our dedicated worker today, it has been proved that police are sheltering the criminals, and members of the opposition party, especially the Samajwadi Party, are being targeted," he claimed.