NEW DELHI, Nov 5 (FD): A rightwing Hindu leader was shot dead in Amritsar on Friday and its impact was expected in faraway Gujarat, where state polls are scheduled to be held next month.
Sudhir Suri, who headed an outfit called the Shiv Sena, had police protection but the attacker was successful in landing at least two shots that killed him. East Punjab is ruled by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which displaced the Congress from power there in March.
A major contender in the two-stage races in BJP-ruled Gujarat, AAP is challenging the Congress for the second spot, if not the top job.
The fatal bridge collapse in Morbi last week and its offers of cheap electricity in the state with the highest energy tariff were seen as AAP’s strong suits to thwart the BJP’s stranglehold in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s home state.
Suri’s killing in an AAP-ruled state is expected to spin the narrative against the challenger.
Suri, a Hindutva right wing leader, was killed on a busy street in Amritsar in an attack that was caught on camera while there were over a dozen cops around him.
Leader of a local outfit that uses the name Shiv Sena Taksali, Suri was holding a protest outside a temple against its management when at least five shots were fired from a pistol, allegedly by a local shopkeeper, according to NDTV.
The killing comes just months after the murder, in May, of another prominent person with police security — singer Sidhu Moosewala — raising questions on Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann’s Aam Aadmi Party government, which was formed in March.
Punjab BJP chief Ashwani Sharma was among the first leaders to react: “The law and order situation has completely broken down in the state.”
State Congress chief Amarinder Singh ‘Raja’ tweeted: “Law and order is deteriorating and going from bad to worse. Congress condemns murderous attack on Shiv Sena leader in Amritsar. Political differences apart, violence is unacceptable. Culprits must be brought to book.”
