According to the police, they rescued Prasen Mondal and brought him to a private hospital, where he was declared dead on arrival.

In a similar incident, a 47-year-old man was allegedly beaten to death at a state-run hostel for students in Kolkata’s Bowbazar area over suspicion of mobile phone theft.

Irshad Alam, a resident of Belgachia, used to work as a mechanic at an electronics shop in the city’s Chandni Chowk. On Friday, he was allegedly detained by a group of people at Udayan Hostel. Police rescued him and shifted him to a hospital where he died later.

Police have arrested 16 people in connection with Alam’s killing.

Union MoS and state BJP president Sukanta Majumdar slammed the TMC government over the incident. “There are reports that some people residing in the north Kolkata hostel were not students but unauthorised outsiders staying there for years. This issue is further complicated as some boarders of the SC/ST hostel were also implicated in the case… Security concerns arise when there is no CCTV footage available of the alleged incident,” Majumdar said.

Meanwhile, expressing concern over the two incidents, Kolkata Mayor Firhad Hakim said, “It is becoming dangerous if people lose their patience and resort to vigilante justice. Anyone with a complaint should approach the police. Allowing such tendencies to continue unchecked could lead to situations spiralling out of control.”

State Congress president Adhir Chowdhury also expressed concern over the incidents and said that they reflected “a loss of control over law and order by the administration”. “There is no control on the law and order situation of the state. That is why such unwanted incidents are happening across the state,” Chowdhury said.

— With PTI inputs