A 65-year-old panchayat mukhiya was shot dead by unidentified gunmen in Jharkhand’s Dumka district on Saturday evening, triggering a protest with locals demanding immediate arrest of the accused, police said.
The incident occurred in Hansdiha area under the Saraiyahat Police Station limits when motorcycle-borne assailants opened fire at Suresh Murmu, a mukhiya of Barheet Panchayat, Sub-divisional Police Officer (Jermundi) Shivendra said.
He was returning home when the incident happened, the SDPO said. Murmu was taken to Saraiyahat Community Health Centre, where a doctor declared him brought dead.
An investigation into the murder has been initiated and the reason behind the killing is yet to be ascertained, the officer said. Local people blocked a road near Hansdiha High School in protest against the incident.