Guwahati, Sep 18 (IANS): A man -- suspected to be a timber smuggler -- has been shot dead by a Forest Guard in Assam’s Kokrajhar district on Sunday, the police said.

The incident happened in the Jharbari forest area.

A senior police officer said that a Forest Patrol party had stopped a bunch of suspected smugglers who were carrying timber logs on bicycles.

The police official said that when the group refused to stop, the Forest Guards fired, following which one of the suspected smugglers died on the spot.

The deceased has been identified as Hemanta Basumatary.

The local residents, later, staged a protest, claiming Basumatary was not a smuggler.

Following the incident, senior police personnel and Kokrajhar (East) MLA Lawrence Islary went to the spot to assess the situation.

The police said that a magisterial inquiry into the incident has been ordered by the Kokrajhar district administration.

Sub-Divisional Magistrate Jituraj Gogoi has been instructed to conduct the investigation and present a thorough report within seven days.