Agartala: A senior CPM leader was murdered at Panisagar in North Tripura district, 155km from here, late on Monday night. The CPM has called 12-hour strike in Panisagar block area on Wednesday.

Tapas Sutradhar, 58, was returning home from a wedding around midnight when unidentified persons slit his throat near his house at North Padmabil, 12km from the local police station, officiating superintendent of police (control) Harkumar Debbarma told The Telegraph.

CPM state secretary Bijan Dhar said it was a "political murder" and accused "BJP-backed murderers" for the killing.

"Tapas was a popular mass leader of undivided Dharmanagar sub-divisional committee, a senior leader of the CPM's newly formed Panisagar sub-divisional committee and a leader of the state committee of All India Krishak Sabha. He was killed by RSS-trained BJP-backed murderers," Dhar alleged.

He claimed that killers might have been on the prowl to murder Tapas for some time. "They might have got the chance last night," he said.

Debbarma said all aspects were being looked into.

BJP spokesperson Mrinal Kanti Deb said the charges were baseless. "Our party workers do not believe in violence. Political violence was something the CPM invented and promoted here. They are trying to politicise a death," Deb said.

The CPM has kept railways and national highways out of the purview of its strike.