Howrah: Passers-by suffer bullet, splinter injuries in clash

HOWRAH: Two passers-by, a 17-year-old and a 26-year-old, were critically injured when they were caught in the crossfire as a violent clash broke out between two traders and their employees in Howrah’s Pilkhana on Saturday morning. The fight over an alleged payment dispute turned Pilkhana into a battlefield from around Saturday midnight till morning. The two traders were detained, while one of the main accused, Md Saddam, was arrested.
The dispute over a deal between a fish merchant and a furniture workshop-cum-interior decoration business owner saw employees of the two hurling bombs at each other on G T Road as well as lanes and bylanes of Pilkhana, police said.While a bullet hit Mohammad Akram (17) when he was heading to open his shop at Pilkhana, Mohammad Wasim (26) sustained bomb splinter wounds when he was buying vegetables and fruits at Pilkhana Bazar.
The trigger was a dispute over alleged non-payment of dues by fish trader Farooq Alam (55) to furniture workshop owner Mohammad Akhtar (52). Alam had given Akhtar a Rs 10-lakh contract to decorate his flat at Pilkhana. Akhtar’s brother Mohammad Sirajul alleged, “Alam paid my brother an advance of Rs 3 lakh. We did the job that we were supposed to but Alam stopped paying the remaining amount.” While Akhtar runs his business from Pilkhana, Farooq is a fish trader at the Howrah fish market near Howrah station.
Rejecting allegations of non-payment, Farooq’s cousin Mohammad Yunus said, “My cousin Farooq paid Akhtar the full sum due for the interior decoration job. But Akhtar had been trying to armtwist him into paying more. When Farooq was returning home on Friday night, Akhtar’s men forced him out of his car and pushed him into a room nearby. He was physically tortured and told to pay. Then they left him on G T Road. My cousin went to the Golabari police station and lodged an FIR against Akhtar and his men.” Police later summoned Akhtar.
A source said, “On learning that an FIR had been lodged against him, Akhtar and his men started hurling bombs in front of Farooq’s house. Soon, Farooq’s men reached the spot and attacked Akhtar’s group with bombs and bullets.”
On Saturday morning, a large police contingent arrived at Pilkhana and fired tear gas to rein in the gangs. “We have detained Akhtar and Farooq for interrogation,” said Amit Rathode, DC north of Howrah City Police. RAF has been deployed.