Maoist militants gunned down a leader of Chhattisgarh's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in insurgency-hit Dantewada district Monday, police said.
"Armed Maoists shot dead Shivdayal Tomar, 50, the vice-president of Dantewada district unit of BJP, at Kawad village when he was visiting an under-construction bridge," said officials at the police headquarters here.
The killing has created terror in the district and the BJP as well as the opposition Congress condemned the incident and termed it a cowardly act.
Police have launched a manhunt to track down the killers.