GUWAHATI: A BJP worker was killed in a clash that broke out between the BJP and Congress ahead of the bypolls in Assam's Nagaon district.
The deceased, Bipul Saikia, was grievously injured during clashes in Samaguri on Thursday. He succumbed to his injuries on Friday morning.
Five Assembly seats - Samaguri, Bongaigaon, Sidli, Dholai and Behali - are going to by-elections which have been necessitated by the election of their sitting MLAs to the Lok Sabha.
There were some isolated incidents of pre-poll violence in the Samaguri constituency earlier but nobody had died.
According to reports, at least 15 persons were injured during Thursday's clashes which broke out when the Congress candidate, Tanzil Hussain, was returning, along with his supporters, after filing his nomination. Some vehicles were also damaged. Tanzil is the son of Congress leader and Dhubri MP Rakibul Hussain. Samaguri is a Congress stronghold with Rakibul representing it since 2001.
The BJP is going all guns blazing to breach the seat. The party's Diplu Ranjan Sarma is pitted against Tanzil in what is expected to be a straight contest.
BJP leader and minister Jayanta Malla Barua condemned the incident.
"The manner in which the Congress party has adopted violent activities around the Samaguri Assembly by-election is utterly condemnable and against the spirit of democracy. In this election violence instigated by the Congress party, one of our BJP workers, was killed. I am deeply saddened by this incident and strongly condemn it," the minister posted on X.
"Violence encouraged by Congress in every election in Samaguri is nothing new. Rakibul Hussain has been doing this for years. Now, having seen that his son, Tanzil Hussain, was bound to be defeated, frustrated Rokibul Hussain has once more gone back to such shameful and despicable acts. This is entirely unacceptable. The people of Samaguri will certainly respond to this in due course," he further wrote.