A Trinamool Congress supporter was allegedly lynched by a group of men in Baguiati early on Sunday.
A section of residents said Sanjeev Das’s death was the outcome of a feud among members of the ruling party, while police blamed a personal dispute.
A murder case has been started and 13 persons have been arrested.
Das, a resident of Baguiati’s Arjunpur, was allegedly dragged out of his home and lynched. Neighbours said an altercation broke out between two groups, both affiliated to Trinamool, on Saturday night.
Both sides allegedly threw bricks at each other. “The warring groups were pacified,” said a resident.
“After some time, a group of men again gathered at the spot. The men dragged Patla (Das’s nickname) out of his house and started beating him up,” said a neighbour.
Family members of the deceased said the police sent only civic volunteers to control the violence.
Officers of the Bidhannagar commissionerate denied the allegation. They said they received an alert at 1.30am on Sunday and immediately sent a large contingent.
“Our force reached the spot and rescued the injured man. He was taken to hospital, where he was declared dead. There was no delay in reaching the spot,” said Aishwarya Sagar, deputy commissioner (airport division), Bidhannagar commissionerate.
Sagar said the violence resulted from a “personal dispute”.
Local Trinamool councillor Debraj Chakraborty said he knew the deceased for many years. “He was active in serving people in the locality," Chakraborty said.
The police said Das had 11 cases against him, including those registered under the arms act and the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act.
