Kolkata, July 29 (PTI) A BJP worker was found hanging from a tree near his house in West Bengal's East Midnapore district on Wednesday, with his party alleging that he was killed by goons of the ruling Trinamool Congress as he had refused to join them.
The Trinamool Congress rubbished the allegation as "completely baseless and politically motivated", and said a police investigation would bring out the truth.
The body of Purnachandra Das (44), a booth president of BJP in the Ramnagar area of the south Bengal district, was found hanging from a tree by locals, police said.
"We are investigating the matter," a police officer said.
According to family members of Das, local TMC leaders had been putting pressure on him for the past few days to join their party.
"But he was not willing to do so. Today a meeting was scheduled to be held with local TMC leaders. Later in the evening, he was found hanging. We want the truth to come out," a member of his family said.
The district BJP leadership alleged that TMC goons killed Das and hanged his body from the tree.
Earlier this month, a senior BJP leader and MLA, Debendra Nath Ray, was found dead under mysterious circumstances near his house in North Dinajpur district in north Bengal.
Ray was found hanging from a ceiling, outside a closed shop, near his home in the Hemtabad area of the district, police said.
His family and the party alleged that it was a "cold-blooded murder by TMC".
The police, however, quoting post-mortem report had said he died due to hanging, and no other injury mark was found on Ray's body.