A teenage college- goer was allegedly shot dead by her married neighbour after her family refused to let her marry him in Birbhum’s Nalhati town on Tuesday.

Sources said local residents heard the sound of firing a few minutes after Nikita Khatun, 19, a first-year undergraduate student of a Nalhati college, went to the rented home of stone trader Mohammed Zaman, 40, on Tuesday afternoon. Residents and family members rushed inside Zaman’s home to see the girl on the floor in a pool of blood with a bullet wound on her chest.

“The girl was shot dead by a person and according to primary investigation there may be some relationship between the victim and the accused. Police are conducting raids to arrest the accused,” said Nagendra Nath Tripathi, the Birbhum superintendent of police.

Zaman is absconding.

Police sources said Zaman had a relationship with Nikita who used to visit the rented accommodation regularly. “Zaman had multiple businesses in stone mine areas of Birbhum and Jhargram. He had married a tribal woman in Jharkhand with whom he was living in Nalhati. Residents said Nikita went to the house daily to spend time with his two-year-old son and got involved with the father,” said an officer.

A resident added that Zaman wanted to marry Nikita but her family had rejected the proposal.