An unauthorised moneylender-cum-small-time contractor of Eastern Coalfields Limited (ECL) was shot dead in West Burdwan's Kulti on Wednesday morning.

Police said Shambhu Mishra aka Pandit, 55, a resident of Chinakuri colliery area, was seated at a tea stall around 7.30am when a motorcycle with two unidentified assailants screeched to a halt before him. They fired six rounds at him.

The police said three bullets hit Mishra's head and chest. He was declared brought dead at Asansol district hospital.

The police recovered three empty cartridges from the spot.

"We have begun a probe. As of now, we suspect business rivalry as the motive," said Abhishek Gupta, deputy commissioner of police (west).

Unauthorised moneylending business is popular in the coal belt and incidents of violence over business rivalry have been reported in the past, a police officer said.
The locality near Jharkhand doesn't have any CCTV camera surveillance.

In Asansol subdivision, five firing incidents have taken place since April in which four persons have been killed.