A girl was shot dead by a distant relative in the Islampur subdivision of North Dinajpur district late on Sunday for allegedly helping his daughter to elope with a youth.

The police have arrested Abdul Aziz and initiated an investigation.

A source said that the victim, a Class X student, was going to a market in Larukhawa, which is under the jurisdiction of the Gobindapur panchayat.

“She was on her way to a local shop when Abdul Aziz intercepted her. We all know that she is his niece and didn’t find anything wrong. I was at a tea stall and when I heard gunshots,” said a villager.

Some residents rushed to the spot and found the girl lying in a pool of blood, while Aziz had fled. They rushed her to the subdivisional hospital in Islampur, where doctors pronounced her dead. She was reportedly shot in
the chest.

A source said Aziz’s minor daughter, who is the deceased’s cousin, eloped with a youth on Sunday.

“Aziz was searching for her and suspected that the girl had helped his daughter escape. In a fit of rage, he took out a firearm and shot her. We want exemplary punishment for him,” said Akbar Ali, another relative of the deceased.

A group of agitated residents reached the hospital and declared that they would launch a movement if Aziz is not arrested within 24 hours.

Police visited the village and launched a search to nab Aziz, who had gone into hiding. They caught him on Monday morning.

“Our officers are probing the case. We are also trying to find how he got his hands on the firearm,” said Rakesh Singh, the superintendent of police of the Islampur police district.

The incident also led to political ripples, with the BJP alleging that the Trinamool Congress is assembling illegal firearms ahead of the Assembly elections.

“The incident of a minor girl being shot dead in public based on a slight suspicion proves our allegation. In addition to demanding punishment for the guilty person, we are demanding that the police recover illegal firearms from the entire area,” said Surajit Sen, a district vice-president of the BJP based in Islampur.

Kanaialal Agarwala, the district Trinamool president and the candidate from the Islampur Assembly constituency, said the police are working on the case.

“We condemn the incident. The law will take its own course. I have also requested the police to conduct drives to seize illegal firearms,” Agarwala said.