MP minister claims 'someone close' behind BJP leader's killing

Barwani (Madhya Pradesh): A senior Madhya Pradesh minister on Monday said "someone close" might be behind the killing of a local BJP leader in Barwani, even as a top police official said they had a few leads and were close to solving the case.

BJP leader Manoj Thakre, 48, was found dead with injury marks on the face and neck in the Balwadi area of Barwani on Sunday.

Earlier, on Thursday, another BJP leader, Prahlad Bandhawar, was shot dead in Mansdaur allegedly by one Manish Bairagi with police claiming it to be the fallout of a financial dispute.

The deceased was chairman of the Mandsaur Municipal Council. Madhya Pradesh Home Minister Bala Bachchan on Monday said the person arrested for Bandhawar's killing was a BJP worker and added that "in this (Barwani) incident too, someone close is involved".

Bachchan, an MLA from Rajpur, hails from Barwani.

Meanwhile, Indore Inspector General of Police Varun Kapoor, briefing reporters on Thakre's case, said, "We are working on two-three leads. At present, it won't be proper to reveal anything but we have got definite leads. We are on the verge of getting success".

Speaking in the state's Sendhwa district, Bachchan also advised the BJP to ensure its cadre didn't take law in their hands. "The BJP should ponder over the fact that its worker is (behind the) killing of its leader. It (BJP) should control them (workers) first instead of blaming the government," Bachchan said in connection with the killing of Bandhawar.

The killings had rankled the opposition BJP with former chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan tweeting on Sunday that they were "a matter of grave concern" and accused the Congress of "taking it lightly and seeking to make a cruel joke of the incidents".