BJP leader Shiv Kumar shot dead in Greater Noida; police suspect property dispute as motive

BJP leader Shiv Kumar and his security guard were shot dead by unidentified bikers in Greater Noida near Delhi on Thursday evening, according to media reports. [caption id=“attachment_4162665” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Representational image. AFP[/caption] NDTV reported that the bikers fired at Kumar when he was travelling in his Toyota Fortuner car in the Bisrakh area. Kumar, who owns two schools in Haibatpur, was returning to his Bahlolpur home with two personal security guards when the incident occurred   The Times of India reported. Two other injured were admitted to a private hospital. The report added that police suspect a property dispute as the motive. This incident comes just two months after  BJP leader Gajender Bhati was murdered by two assailants in Ghaziabad. Bhati and his friend Balbir Singh Chouhan were on a motorcycle in Khora colony when the two bike-borne attackers came near them and opened fire, city superintendent of police Arun Kumar Singh said. They rushed to a private hospital in neighbouring Noida where doctors pronounced Bhati dead on arrival, Singh said, adding that  Chouhan, who was critically injured, was undergoing treatment in the hospital. Former MLA Amarpal Sharma was accused of hatching a conspiracy and arrested. After the incident, safety for residents of Khora has become a major concern concern. “Earlier, people used to avoid stepping out of their homes after 7 pm. That situation has changed now but crimes still take place. Every other day, we hear cases of chain/mobile snatching and robberies,” said Ram Dikshit, a resident of Matrika Nagar in Khora told The Hindustan Times. The municipality, which is now politically charged, is set to go to polls on 26 November.