A youth leader of the Trinamul Congress in East Burdwan’s Ausgram was shot dead by four armed men while he was on his way home with his elderly father on Tuesday afternoon.

Sources said Chanchal Bakshi, 42, was the youth leader of Debshala and was riding a bike to his home with his father Shyamal, who is also the chief of a gram panchayat.

Trinamul blamed the BJP for the murder, citing that Chanchal was a very active leader and his efforts contributed to Trinamul’s win in the Assembly polls. “BJP-backed goons killed our popular leader in a bid to weaken our organisation here,” said Syed Haider Ali, chief of Ausgram 2 panchayat samiti.

BJP leaders in Burdwan denied the charge and alleged that the murder was the fallout of rivalry between two Trinamul factions. “Trinamul’s internal feud has resulted in the murder,” said a BJP leader in Burdwan.