Bhopal, Nov 22 (IANS): A man was shot dead by unidentified criminals outside his home in the Dewas district of Madhya Pradesh on Friday.

An official said that the incident occurred at a village under Kannod police station area in Dewas district, around 150 km from state state capital Bhopal.

The deceased person has been identified as Nisar Khan who was running an electronic shop in a nearby marketplace.

The daylight murder triggered panic in the area. Upon receiving the information, local area police arrived at the scene and launched an investigation.

“Around 7:30 am, two unidentified men called Nasir on his phone and asked him to meet them outside his home. As Nasir stepped out of his home and walked around 20 meters, criminals opened fire at him,” the official said.

He said that on hearing gun shots, local residents reached the spot hurriedly. However, the criminals fled from the crime scene. The victim was rushed to a nearby hospital where he was declared brought dead.

Dewas SP Punit Gahlot said multiple teams have been deployed for investigation. CCTV cameras installed in nearby areas are being investigated to identify criminals.

"After the postmortem, the body was handed over to the family to perform the last rites. Meanwhile, several persons, including some other shop owners are being questioned," Gahlot added.

He added that the motive of the crime remains unknown, however, preliminary inquiry suggests an old rivalry behind the crime.