Killers hired to murder teacher: Police

Statesman News Service

MALDA, 29 OCT: The secretary and two other assistant teachers of Raniganj High School in Gazole were interrogated today in connction with the murder case of Utpal Sarkar, an assistant teacher of the school.

Police would interrogate the secretary of the school, Mr P Saha again along with Mr Prasanta Haldar, who was present at the time when Mr Sarkar was shot in a car on the night of 2 October on NH 34 under Gazole police station.

Teachers of Raniganj High School shut down their school for three days from 21 October demanding arrest of the main culprits behind the incident.

The family members of Sarkar and his associates belonging to the ABTA, submitted representations to police officers several times demanding arrest of the criminals.

Though police had arrested two persons who had allegedly targeted the car in which Sarkar was coming to Malda, but they could not nab the culprits who ‘masterminded’ the murder.

Though police had not yet arrived at any definite conclusion, they suspect Mr Ashok Saha and his relative Mr P Saha, secretary of the same school.

A few years back there was conflict between Sarkar and Mr P Saha, secretary of the school, on various issues relating to the institution, police sources said.

After thorough investigation police believe that Sarkar was shot dead by some “contract killers” who plotted the entire plan of looting Mr Ashok Saha’s car by which Sarkar was coming to Malda town.

However, Mr Saha, who is also the headmaster of another school in Gazole, was driving his own car. Mr Saha's staff Mr Prasanta Haldar, who was also shot at by the criminals, was sitting in the back of the car.

Police suspect that it was not a case of robbery but a well planned murder because the night when the incident occurred, the criminals did not take other valuables kept in the car apart from a sum of Rs 10,000.

To add to it, Mr Ashok Saha, who was driving the car, was almost unhurt.Police interrogated Mr Haldar, who has returned from Kolkata PG hospital, and planned to interrogate him.

However, during interrogation he said: “I do not know anything before the incident because I was sleeping”.