The murder of Rajesh Jha, a.k.a. Raju, on Saturday triggered a war of words between the BJP and Trinamul, with leaders from both parties accusing each other of a "nexus" with coal smugglers and other criminals in the state.

Trinamul leaders accused the BJP of links with Jha, a businessman in Durgapur, who was apparently a key player in coal smuggling in the region for one-and-a-half decades.

The BJP, in turn, accused Trinamul leaders of involvement in coal and cattle smuggling. A preliminary police probe revealed that on Saturday, Jha was using the SUV owned by cattle trader Abdul Latif, known to be close to Trinamul strongman Anubrata Mondal arrested last year for his alleged role in a cattle-smuggling case.

BJP national vice-president Dilip Ghosh alleged Jha was murdered to prevent him from opening his mouth before the ED as he was supposed to face the central agency's interrogations on Monday.

"He may have been murdered to ensure that critical information pertaining to coal smuggling doesn't reach the ED officials.... This matter should be investigated," he said.

However, multiple sources in the BJP said Jha's connection with the party was an embarrassment. Jha joined the BJP before the 2021 Assembly polls in the presence of Ghosh, then the state party president.

"Several of our state and central leaders, including Union ministers, had stayed in his hotel in Durgapur during their visit to the town to attend party and government events.... Everyone is aware of his BJP connections and it's embarrassing. Some of us had objected to his joining the party, but no one listened," said a BJP leader in Durgapur on Sunday.

In November last year, Union coal and parliamentary affairs minister Pralhad Joshi stayed in Jha's hotel during his two-day official visit to Eastern Coalfields Limited (ECL). A controversy had broken out after a photograph of the Union minister Joshi holding a meeting with local BJP MLA Lakshman Ghorai in his room in the hotel in the presence of coal smuggler Joydeb Khan surfaced on social media.

The state-level meeting of the BJP for south Bengal, attended by both state and central leadership, was also held in the hotel recently. The meeting was called to discuss the party's poll prospects in the rural polls.

"Our leaders may attack Trinamul, but the fact is Raju Jha was closely associated with our party," said a BJP leader in West Burdwan.

Former BJP MP and present minister in the Mamata Banerjee cabinet Babul Supriyo highlighted this link in his tweets on Sunday as he accused Ghosh and Ghorai of inducting persons like Jha in the BJP, which he had apparently tried to resist when he was with the saffron party.

Trinamul vice-president Joyprakash Majumder, another BJP turncoat, went after Ghosh for inducting "coal smugglers" in the BJP.

"They (the BJP) thought that with the help of such elements they could win the Assembly polls. Those in the BJP who are accusing Trinamul of having links with cattle and coal smugglers, must look at their track record," he said.

Supriyo asked why the central agency would not investigate the role of the BJP in the coal and cattle smuggling before suggesting that state BJP leaders should also be interrogated.

Ghosh said that Jha was among many who joined the BJP before the 2021 polls. "He was an affluent trader with several businesses. He was among many who joined our party then. Many of them have now switched to Trinamul.... Their (Trinamul) ministers and leaders are behind the bars for links with coal and cattle smuggling and involvement in the recruitment scam. We don't need lessons from them," said Ghosh.

BJP MLA from Durgapur West, Lakshman Ghorui, said Raju Jha did join the BJP but wasn't active in party events after the Assembly polls.