Bagbazar death: Sr citizen fell from balcony while having smoke
Times of India | 18 May 2025
12 Kolkata: Police probing the recovery of a partially charred body of an elderly man found inside a newly constructed building in Bagbazar have identified him as a neighbour. He somehow fell from the balcony of his own house onto the neighbouring construction site while having a smoke.Police said he fell on a pile of construction material and plastic, which caught fire from the cigarette end and partially burnt him. The man was identified as Somnath Mukherjee, 72, who lived in a house next to the building at Bagbazar's Nivedita Lane, where his body was found on Saturday."He was missing since 8 am on Saturday, and his family even filed a missing person report at Shyampukur PS. During investigation, we matched his photograph and clothes with those of the missing person and they matched," said a senior officer of Kolkata Police.Locals spotted smoke emanating from the premises of a four-storey building around 8.15 am on Saturday and informed Shyampukur PS. Upon arrival, cops found the body, extinguished the flames and transported him to a local hospital, where he was declared dead on arrival.Probe revealed that Mukherjee was a resident of the neighbouring house and was a habitual smoker. "On Saturday morning, while smoking at his flat's balcony, he somehow fell onto the adjacent construction site. It is a freak death," said the officer.The post-mortem revealed that he suffered fractures in his shoulder and other parts due to the fall. Cops have registered a case of unnatural death and are investigating the matter. The deceased's family has not filed any complaint with the police.