In the second murder in as many days, Trilok Agarwal, a close relative of Chhattisgarh General Administration and Health Minister K K Gupta, was shot dead in Mahasamund district, official sources said in capital Raipur on Friday.
Two unidentified assailants shot at Agarwal at around 0100 IST at his Saraipalli residence, 170 km from Raipur, sources told PTI.
Agarwal, a prominent rice mill owner and a local Congress leader, was immediately rushed to the Raipur Medical College Hospital, where he was declared brought dead, they said.
On hearing about the incident, Chief Minister Ajit Jogi, whose family was close to Agarwal, directed the Superintendent of Police P S Kesha to rush to the spot.
Preliminary investigation revealed that when Agarwal reached home from Raipur, his family members expressed fears about intruders in the backyard of their house.
When Agarwal opened the door, two assailants shot at him twice from close range, hitting him in the stomach. The culprits then fled from the scene.
Early on Thursday, the Nationalist Congress Party's state unit treasurer Ram Avatar Jaggi was shot dead near the Mohdapara police station in Raipur.