Jamshedpur, Nov 3 : Normal life was hit on Friday as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) observed a shutdown in Jamshedpur today to protest against the killing of Ashish Dey, one of the owners of Sreeleathers.

Shops, business establishments and educational institutions were closed. Vehicular traffic also remained off the road in the district.

Several political parties, business and traders associations and organisations supported the shutdown.

Hundreds of supporters, demanding the immediate arrest of Dey's killers, took to streets and halted the Puri-New Delhi Purusotham Express for over half an hour,

BJP Jharkhand unit general secretary D Goswami claimed that the shutdown evoked "total and spontaneous response".

Meanwhile, police said that no break through has been made in connection with the killing of Dey.

Dey, 53, was gunned down by motorcycle-borne assailants, when he was on his way to his shop in the Sakchi area on Friday.

On Friday, Jharkhand Chief Minister Madhu Koda directed the police to nab the culprits at the earliest.

According to sources, Dey had been receiving extortion threats over for last few months.

Sreeleathers has showrooms across the country including Kolkata, Jamshedpur and Delhi, and in the US. The chain is run by the Dey family and a conglomeration of dealers all over the country. (ANI)