Kolkata, February 8 An elderly man died in the North 24 Parganas district of West Bengal after allegedly being assaulted by a TMC councillor while protesting illegal construction, his family alleged in a police complaint on Sunday.
Police said they have registered a case of unnatural death and are interrogating Rabindra Nath Bhattacharya, the TMC councillor of the 23rd ward of North Barrackpore Municipality.
Tulsi Adhikari, the deceased, was protesting the illegal construction in front of his house, which had been ongoing for several days. On Saturday, Bhattacharya arrived at the scene, and a heated argument ensued with Adhikari, according to the family's police complaint.
According to the police complaint, as the situation escalated, Bhattacharya allegedly assaulted Adhikari and his son, Hemanta.
Bhattacharya repeatedly punched, slapped, and kicked the elderly man, after which he collapsed. He was taken to Jagadish Chandra Bose Hospital in Barrackpore Cantonment, where doctors pronounced him dead, the family claimed.
The TMC leader denied the allegations, calling them "baseless and politically motivated".
"I did not assault anyone. I am being defamed for political reasons. Any death is unfortunate, but I did not hit him. Rather, they attacked me. The son of the deceased grabbed my neck and pushed me. The CCTV footage will confirm this," he claimed.
Police said they have sent the body for a post-mortem examination, which will determine the cause of death.
Locals staged a demonstration, demanding the immediate arrest of Bhattacharya.
Former Barrackpore MP Arjun Singh claimed that the police were shielding the TMC leader.
