Bengal: Biker burnt to death in bizarre accident in Salt Lake, locals blame police

Kolkata: A biker was burnt to death after his two-wheeler, which was hit from behind by a private car, caught fire in Salt Lake near here on Wednesday evening, an officer said.

The incident sparked tension as locals staged a protest and allegedly threw stones at police, prompting officers to fire a few rounds of tear gas to control the situation near Salt Lake’s New Bridge area.

“The deceased was identified as food delivery boy Rahul Mondal, a resident of Basanti,” the officer added.

He added, “The car collided with a few other vehicles before hitting the bike. Several people were injured and shifted to a nearby hospital. Locals began protesting, and some of them threw stones, forcing us to fire tear gas to disperse the crowd.”

Witnesses claimed that police made little effort to rescue Mondal, who was trapped between railings before catching fire. Locals dragged the passengers of the four-wheeler out of the vehicle.

“The situation is tense, but our officers did a good job of bringing it under control. We are investigating the matter,” a senior police officer of Bidhannagar Police Commissionerate said.

The officer said a few policemen were also injured after stones were thrown at them, allegedly by the locals.

Alleging police inaction, a local resident said traffic police posted at the spot were mere spectators busy taking photos of the accident. “Policemen did nothing to rescue the man. We pulled the passengers out of the vehicle, but could not save the biker. Police are solely responsible for this accident. Such traffic violations are rampant in this area,” a local resident said.