TMC panchayat member hacked to death in Hooghly

A Trinamool Congress leader in Kanpur in West Bengal's Hooghly district was hacked to death by unidentified assailants, police said on Thursday. The incident occurred near the Kanaipur autorickshaw stand on Wednesday evening when a group of men attacked him with sharp objects, a senior officer said. The TMC leader was taken to the SSKM hospital in Kolkata, where he was declared dead, the police said. "Trinamool Congress panchayat member Pintu Chakraborty was hacked to death by unidentified assailants in Kanaipur while he was returning home on Wednesday evening. An investigation is underway," he said. Eyewitnesses said the attackers struck him multiple times before fleeing the scene. Locals took him to a nearby hospital, from where he was referred to Kolkata for better treatment. State Transport Minister Snehasis Chakraborty, who visited the hospital, said the deceased was close to him as they had studied together. "I am unable to comprehend the reason behind the murder, but I hope the police will arrest the culprits soon," he said. Opposition leaders alleged that an internal feud within the Trinamool Congress was the reason behind the attack.