Bengal student's murder: Four more arrests, protests in assembly

Kolkata, July 7 (IANS) The West Bengal assembly was Monday plunged into pandemonium as opposition members raised slogans and staged a walkout protesting the murder of a college student who had raised his voice against anti-social activities, even as police arrested four more people in connection with the killing.

Dismembered body parts of Sourav Chowdhury were found between Duttapukur and Bamangachi stations in North 24 Parganas district Saturday.

One person was arrested Sunday, but the prime suspect Shyamal Karmakar remains elusive.

As the day's proceedings began in the assembly, the Congress lawmakers refused to ask questions in protest.

Once the Question hour was over, Congress and Left Front legislators and the sole lawmaker of the Socialist Unity Centre of India-Communist (SUCI-C) sought to move separate adjournment motions demanding arrest of the prime suspect and a statement from Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

Speaker Biman Banerjee allowed the lawmakers to read out the texts of the motions, but disallowed them.

Angry Congress lawmakers and the SUCI-C leader walked out, but the Left Front legislators trooped near the speaker's podium and continued to shout slogans.

Later, speaking to media persons, Leader of Opposition and Communist Party of India-Marxist politburo member Surjya Kanta Mishra accused Mamata Banerjee of protecting the "worthy sons" of the ruling Trinamool Congress.

"In return, the party legislators are protecting her. Whatever motion we move, it is disallowed. During our time, a day used to be allotted for transacting unofficial business. But the practice has now been done away with," Mishra said.

Senior Congress MLA Manas Ranjan Bhunia said that even two days after the incident, the main accused was absconding.

Meanwhile, the Bharatiya Janata Party said it would send a report on Chowdhury's death to the union home ministry highlighting the anarchy and lawlessness in the state.

"We will send a comprehensive report about the incident to the home ministry so that it understood the state of lawlessness in Bengal," state BJP president Rahul Sinha told media persons.