123 Kolkata: The mysterious death of a 59-year-old ASI of Kolkata Police, who was on medical leave, at his home near Kudghat under Regent Park PS has led to widespread protests by neighbours. They alleged that he was assaulted, which caused his death.
They claimed that the body carried wounds and that his kin assaulted him in public last Tuesday. The officer, Shankar Chattopadhyay, was posted at Alipore PS. He died late on Thursday, after which locals staged a protest demanding probe and arrests. "The family was trying to arrange a death certificate in a clandestine manner. They even tried to convince two local doctors," alleged a neighbour.
The Regent Park PS sent the body for a postmortem. Officers said though a wound was noticed on his forehead, autopsy experts said it was an old one. The family said Shankar fell while getting ready at home before leaving for his treatment at a hospital.
"Shankar was hyper diabetic and operated on twice earlier, where his leg fingers were chopped off. He was also suffering from hypertension along with a weak kidney. The family wished to avoid a postmortem and approached a homeopath, who refused to issue death certificate. They then consulted a second doctor. It was around this time that locals launched the stir. We took the victim to M R Bangur, where he was declared brought dead," said police.