A land dealer in Sukantanagar, Siliguri ward 38, was shot at and critically injured by two criminals in front of his home late on Monday evening.

Bidyut Saha, who is in his mid-forties, sustained a bullet wound in his chest and is under treatment at a private nursing home.

“Around 8.45pm, I got a call from a local resident that an incident of firing had occurred at Sukantanagar. Later, I learnt that Bidyut Saha, who is also a Trinamul supporter, was sitting in his office in front of his residence when some criminals fired at him,” said Dulal Dutta, the local Trinamul councillor.

“We have no inkling about the attackers but suspect some business rivalry behind this. We have requested police to arrest the attackers,” the councillor added

As his family members heard the gunshots, they came out and found Saha lying in a pool of blood. They rushed him to a private nursing home in Hakimpara and later shifted him to another private clinic in Sevoke Road.

A Siliguri Metropolitan Police team has started an investigation. Nobody has been arrested so far.

“During preliminary probe, we came to know that two persons came on a motorcycle, fired gunshots at him and fled the spot,” said a police officer.

Police are also in the process of collecting CCTV footage from the area and working on some leads, said sources.

Residents of the area and police sources said Saha was earlier accused of being involved in illegal land deals and arrested. A few months back, he came out of the correctional home on bail.

Ranjan Pal Choudhury, the surgeon treating Saha, said: “He has a bullet injury in the left side of his chest. His condition is critical. He has been sedated and is on ventilator support.”