VARANASI, May 31 -- A 26-year-old hotel owner was shot dead by three bike-borne assailants in the Phullanpur-Fattehpur Sikandar area under the City Kotwali police station limits in Ghazipur district on Saturday, police said on Saturday. The incident occurred as the victim was stepping out of the hotel when the attackers, who were allegedly lying in wait, opened fire before fleeing the scene, said police. The deceased was identified as Vineet Rai, a resident of Ashtbhuja Colony. According to police, three assailants carried out the attack around 11 pm on Friday night. Police rushed him to a hospital, where doctors declared him dead. Based on a complaint filed by the deceased's father, Alok Rai, police registered a case against the three assailants under Section 103(1) (murder) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and launched an investigation. According to Alok Rai, a resident of Ashtabhuji Colony and president of the Hotel Association, the family operates a hotel in the Phullanpur-Fatehpur Sikandar area. He said his elder son, Vineet Rai, and younger son, Adarsh Rai, were responsible for overseeing and managing the establishment and were present at the hotel when the incident occurred. A senior police officer said the preliminary investigation suggests the murder stemmed from a long-standing personal feud. Ghazipur superintendent of police Dr Iraj Raja said four police teams have been formed and are conducting raids in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar to apprehend the accused. He added that the suspects would be arrested soon. Varanasi range deputy inspector general of police (DIG) Vaibhav Krishna and Ghazipur SP Raja inspected the crime scene. The DIG also met the victim's family members and assured them that strict legal action would be taken against those responsible. DIG Krishna said that police teams had been formed to secure the accused's arrest at the earliest. He added that the officials concerned had been directed to carry out a fair, effective and speedy investigation based on the available evidence. A 45-year-old woman was found dead under suspicious circumstances near a bamboo grove in Kaushambi district on Friday night. Police registered a murder case and formed special teams to investigate the incident. The woman, identified as Manita Devi, was a resident of Khijirpur Kalai alias Imligaon village in the Sarai Akil area. Based on a complaint filed by the victim's husband, police registered a murder case against unidentified persons. No one has been named in the FIR so far. Investigators said the family suspects foul play but has not reported any known dispute or enmity. Police also noted that no visible injury marks were found on the body, making the post-mortem report important in determining the cause of death. In a significant development in the investigation of a case involving the gang rape and alleged trafficking of a 17-year-old girl, a forensic team on Saturday inspected the sealed Cloth House shop owned by prime accused Gulzar. The shop is located on Raipur Road in Patti, Pratapgarh. The shop had been sealed for nearly two weeks following public outrage over the incident. Authorities had previously taken strict action, including a partial demolition drive led by circle officer (Patti) Manoj Kumar Raghuvanshi and Kotwali in-charge Anandpal Singh, during which the front tin shed and flooring were damaged by a bulldozer. The investigation is being carried out jointly by the police and the forensic department. Police previously arrested the main accused, followed by his accomplice, Mangal. Both individuals have been sent to jail. Officials confirmed that further legal action will depend on the findings of the forensic analysis and the overall investigation. A 59-year-old jeweller from Jaunpur was killed after being hit by an unidentified vehicle in the early hours of Saturday while travelling to Prayagraj for work, police reported. The deceased, Prem Shankar Verma, was a resident of Nigoh village in Jaunpur district and owned a house in Prayagraj's Chhota Baghara area, where he frequently traveled for business. According to police, Verma left his home on his motorcycle around 3 am. Around 4 am, he was struck by an unidentified vehicle near Baudai village on the Phulpur-Wari road, killing him on the spot. Kotwali police took custody of the body and sent it for post-mortem examination....