Unidentified assailants shoot chief priest dead in Puredaal

A chief priest of a temple in Ayodhya was on Friday shot dead by some unidentified assailants in Puredaal village in Gonda, police said.

Ramdev Das (77) of "Ayaram Akhara" of Ayodhya, who had come in Gonda on Thursday along with his disciples to take part in a religious programme in Jhalidham Mandir was shot at about 10 mts from the temple when he had gone out to attend to nature's call, Superintendent of Police RP Singh Yadav said.

After the incident, people rushed him to the district hospital but doctors declared him brought dead, Yadav said adding an FIR has been lodged by one of his disciples and investigations are on.

The efforts were on to ascertain the cause of crime, the SP said.