Shop owner shot dead by suspected militants in BTAD

GUWAHATI: In yet another violent incident in Bodoland Territorial Autonomous District (BTAD), a trader identified as Ajit Agarwala (45) was shot dead by suspected National Democratic Front of Boroland's Songbijit (NDFB-S) faction militants in Udalguri district's Rowta area on Saturday night.
Agawala, a hardware shop owner, was shot from a very close range at his residence on Saturday night when he was having dinner.Though rushed to a private hospital in Guwahati, he succumbed to the bullet injuries on Sunday. Two bullets hit him on the head and body.
The deceased's brother Bikram Agarwala, who was dining with him, suffered a bullet injury in the leg. However, he is reported to be out of danger now.
"Three unidentified gunmen jumped off the Agarwalas' boundary wall around 9.30 pm last (Saturday) night when he and Bikram were having dinner on the verandah. The gunmen shot them from a very close range and fled the spot," said Udalguri superintendent of police Bir Bikram Gogoi.
The police suspect that the militants served a demand note to Agarwala earlier. "A few months back, Agarwala received phone calls from suspected NDFB(S) militants. But when asked, he denied having received any demand note. Possibly, the militants had asked for a huge amount of money from him," the SP said, adding that the police had identified some of the cadres involved in the firing and had already launched an operation to nab them. However, Agarwala's family members denied getting any demand call.