Ranchi: Three persons, Jharkhand state secretary of Forward Bloc Susanta Sengupta, his brother Sanjay and their driver were shot dead by AK47 rifle-toting killers, while two others travelling with them in a car were wounded in Dhanbad district on October 5.

Director general of police, R R Prasad said that Sengupta and the others were driving home to Nirsha village from Dhanbad when the unidentified killers in a car overtook them at Gopalpur village en route and opened fire killing the three instantly and wounding the other two.

The car driver was identified as D D Pal.

District superintendent of police, Murarilal Meena said in Dhanbad that the killers, armed with AK47 rifles, drove away immediately.

The injured were admitted to the Central Hospital in Dhanbad.

Meena said it was not the handiwork of terrorists, suggesting it might be a result of personal enmity.

Sengupta had contested the last Assembly election from Nirsha Assembly constituency against his immediate rival, Arup Chatterjee, son of slain MCC MLA Gurudas Chatterjee and lost.

PTI