Calcutta, Jan 8 :     The former leader of a gang active in the Chetla-Alipore area was shot dead on Saturday morning at the crossing of Raja Santosh Road and Alipore Road, about 50 metres from his home. Bhola Mohapatra, who had links with a former deputy mayor of the Calcutta Municipal Corporation, had unleashed a reign of terror in the Chetla-Alipore area in the early 90s. He was involved in cases of extortion and rioting. Mohapatra was sipping tea at a roadside stall around 7.45 am when four assailants, allegedly with CPM affiliation, walked up to him and shot him from point-blank range. Mohapatra, 42, chief organiser of Alipore Kalyan Samity, a social workers' association with premises close by, was wounded in the chest and leg. He was rushed to Calcutta Hospital and then to Kothari Medical Research Centre, where doctors declared him dead. Residents tried to block the intersection, saying Mohapatra had been murdered because he crossed over from the CPM to Trinamul Congress. Policemen from Alipore and New Alipore police stations resorted to a mild lathicharge to have the roadblock lifted, samity secretary Amitabha Roy said. The deputy commissioner, detective department, Narayan Ghosh, however, said later that the killing was an outcome of a long-standing gang feud. A post mortem would be conducted on the body, he added. Pronab Dutta, an executive member of the club, said Mohapatra had parked his Zen around 7.30 am on the club premises and walked across the road for his morning cup of tea at the stall. About 15 minutes later, people heard four gunshots. Mohapatra slumped to the ground, while his killers walked away briskly. The police later named two of them as Kushal Guha, alias Kalu, and Dilip Pramanik, alias Dilua. The other two remain unidentified. 'Club-members rushed Mohapatra in a car to hospital. On the way, he was gasping for breath and tried to speak. But he could not,' Dutta added. Debu Chatterjee, president of the club, said Mohapatra was arranging the annual sports of the club, scheduled between January 22 and 26. As it was a major event, involving hundreds of participants, he had come early to supervise the arrangements, he added. Kalyan Samity members are at a loss over the motive behind Mohapatra's murder. According to Debu Chatterjee, 'Mohapatra had helped a large number of distressed people in the area. He inspired affection in many, especially among the under-privileged.' But the members recall that on January 10, 1995, just before the club's annual sports, Mohapatra was attacked by rivals in front of his house. He had received splinter injuries, but the assailants had gone scot free, the president added. Shops in the area were shut down as a mark of respect to Mohapatra and to protest the crime. The club president alleged that the police 'were not taking steps to nab the assailants. They have not conducted raids so far to track down the killers.' Actor dies in hospital: Bengali film and stage actor Saumitra Banerjee died at the Ramakrishna Mission Seva Pratishthan on Saturday. He was 46. He had been admitted to hospital after a old ailment took a turn for the worse.