Kolkata: Rabindranath Bhattacharya, a suspended Trinamool councillor from Ward No 23 in North Barrackpore Municipality, a senior lawyer, and the secretary of Barrackpore Bar Association, was arrested on Sunday after an FIR was filed accusing him of assaulting an 81-year-old man, Tulsi Adhikari, which allegedly led to Adhikari's death. Bhattacharya was slapped with murder charges under section 101 of BNS and was produced in a Barrackpore court on Monday afternoon.
He was remanded in police custody for seven days.
"An investigation is on, and the accused will be further interrogated. We are also waiting for the autopsy report to know the exact cause of the victim's death," an officer said.
The incident occurred on Sunday during a dispute when the elderly man confronted the councillor to object against a three-storey unauthorised construction next to the victim's house at Barrackpore's Manirampur near Bally Ghat.
"The objection of the Adhikari family against the unauthorised construction was already registered and the construction was stopped," said Malay Ghosh, chairman of North Barrackpore Municipality.
Bhattacharya, however, denied all allegations levelled against him before being arrested.
On Monday, hundreds of BJP supporters led by former Barrackpore MP Arjun Singh launched an agitation in front of Barrackpore Court, demanding capital punishment for Bhattacharya. The agitators also put up a roadblock on BT Road.
Trinamool has suspended Bhattacharya for six years.