Raipur: Three days ahead of the first phase of polling in Chhattisgarh, Maoists have allegedly assassinated a BJP leader Ratan Dubey, who was actively engaged in election campaigning, media reports said.

Dubey held the position of the vice-president of the BJP's Narayanpur district unit.

The incident occurred on Saturday in the Kaushalnar area of the district. Dubey was the representative for this area in the Zilla Panchayat.

According to the police, Dubey was campaigning for the BJP in the Kaushalnar market area when he was brutally murdered with an axe.

The Maoists had recently issued a press release warning against participation in the elections.

A senior police official has dispatched a team to the scene to investigate the murder.

The state's assembly elections will take place in two phases, on November 7 and 17, with Narayanpur being one of the 20 constituencies scheduled for November 7.