Trader’s body found in a sack, locals demonstrate

Statesman News Service

MALDA, March 10: Angry residents of Sadarghat blocked a state highway demanding arrest of the killer after they found a body of a local trader, Tarun Saha (24), on the bank of Mahananda River this morning.

Locals lifted the road block after police assured them that the culprit would be arrested as soon as possible.

Police are, however, still clueless about the motive behind the murder. Interrogation revealed that there was whiff of a business transaction and a love affair with a local girl gone awry.

Tarun Saha had a grocery shop near Disco More in Sadarghat near Malda police station.

According to his father, Mr Malin Saha, Tarun did not return home last night. On Monday morning he went to his shop and returned home at noon. Yesterday he had left home ad was supposed to go to the shop.

“I got worried when he did not return home last night. He had not informed us of any prior programme. We were thinking of informing police when this morning we came to know that his body was found in a sack lying on the banks of Mahananda”, Mr Saha said.

Police recovered the body and sent it for postmortem. After primary investigation police suspect that he was strangled to death by more than one person.

According to local people, Tarun had no criminal background. But in last two months, he had heated exchanges with customers who used to buy goods from his shop on credit system but did not pay back money on time.

Trouble broke out when Tarun claimed that due amount and did not agree to sell goods on credit to them. Some customers allegedly threatened him of dire consequences.

He was also supposed to meet somebody to reconcile the a love affairs a few months back. The family members of Tarun denied of any possible love affair. angle to the murder. (END)

Agitation

MALDA, March 10: Higher Secondary examinees today staged an agitation in front of the Babupur Higher Secondary School when school authorities demanded Rs 50 from each examinee as centre fee before delivering their admit cards. The school authority said that the amount to be collected would be spent for meeting the police deployment expenses. Backed by the CPI-ML (Liberation), the agitators demanded receipt against the amount paid from the headmaster. The agitators withdrew after the headmaster accepted the demand. Government guideli-nes, however, stipulate, the examination centre committee cannot collect more than Rs 30 as centre fee. n SNS