Bolpur arson case: Two arrested

Kolkata: Two persons, including a woman and a man, have been arrested for the alleged murder of three persons, including a child, by setting their room on fire in Bolpur. The accused woman Smriti Bibi is found to be a relative of the deceased persons and the other accused

Safikul Islam alias Chandan is her boyfriend.

Earlier, on Thursday night, Sheikh Tuta, his wife, Rupa Bibi (30) and their younger son Ayan Sheikh (4) were sleeping inside a room at their residence in Nutan geet area in Rajatpur village of Bolpur. Some unknown people allegedly sprayed kerosene inside the room through the window and set the room on fire. When Tuta and Bibi woke up they had no chance to escape as the door of the room was already gutted and they had suffered critical burn injuries.

Hearing them screaming, their elder son Sheikh Raj came out of the adjacent room. Seeing his parents and brother in danger, he also screamed and called the neighbours. Villagers arrived and threw water to douse the flames. After a few moments, Tuta along with his wife and younger son were rescued and rushed to Bolpur Sub Divisional Hospital in critical condition. As their condition was deteriorating, they were shifted to Burdwan Medical College and Hospital where Bibi and Ayan were declared brought dead. Later, Tuta also succumbed to his injuries.

While probing the case, cops came to know about Smriti, sister-in-law of Tuta, allegedly had an extramarital affair with a quack doctor Safikul. On suspicion, Smriti was detained and after prolonged interrogation she reportedly confessed to the crime. Smriti reportedly told the cops that Safikul had arranged chloroform which was sprayed inside the room before setting it on fire. The chloroform was used to make them unconscious so they can’t escape the room before fire spreads. Later, Safikul was also arrested. Meanwhile, on Sunday, forensic experts visited the gutted house and collected samples.