Refusal to share a smoke prompted a person to allegedly murder a neighbour at a tea estate in Alipurduar on Sunday morning.

After the incident, residents ransacked the house of the accused, who absconded. Police brought the situation under control and started a search for him.

Sources said that around 10am, Milan Oraon, 21, a resident of Kadambini tea estate under Falakata police station of the district, was smoking a bidi. Rajesh Oraon Bara, a worker in the same garden, asked Milan for the same butt to have a few puffs.

Milan refused to share his bidi, resulting in an altercation between the duo. Both abused the other. Suddenly, Rajesh took out a pair of scissors and stabbed Milan twice in his chest.

Milan screamed and collapsed on the ground while Rajesh fled the spot. Others rushed to the spot to find Milan bleeding profusely. They rushed him to the super-specialty hospital in Falakata where doctors pronounced him dead.

As the news spread, a section of residents reached Rajesh’s house and ransacked it.

A police team dispersed the crowd.

“Rajesh is an ill-tempered person. On a number of occasions earlier, he had fought with people over trifles. But we had no inkling that he could murder a person over being denied a bidi,” said an elderly worker.

Later in the day, police took Milan’s body to Alipurduar district hospital for a post-mortem.

“A person has been killed in Kadambini tea estate. Our officers are probing the incident and also searching for the accused who has absconded,” said Y. Raghuvamshi, SP, Alipurduar.