A local leader of Juba Dal, the youth wing of Bangladesh Nationalist Party, was killed and another critically injured in a clash between two rival groups over establishing supremacy and drug peddling in Pabna Sadar upazila on Saturday night.
The deceased was identified as Mehdi Masud Pavel Molla, 40, son of late Muslem Master of village Islampur and joint general secretary of Goyespur union unit of Juba Dal.
The injured, Imran Sajib Molla, 25, son of Abdur Sabur Molla of the same village and cousin of Pavel, was admitted to Rajshahi Medical College Hospital in a critical condition.
Police and local people said that Pavel and Imran had a long-standing dispute with rivals Jony, Jewel, Nazrul, Mufiz Uddin, and others over drug dealing and establishing dominance in the area.
At about 10:30pm, the two groups were locked in a fight near Islampur Bridge.
During the fight, Pavel and Imran were hacked with sharp weapons and were critically injured.
Local people took them to Pabna General Hospital where physicians declared Pavel dead.
Officer-in-charge of Pabna Sadar Police Station Abdus Salam said the body was sent to hospital morgue for post-mortem examinations.
