A jute worker in his fifties suffered a fatal fall when he was allegedly pushed and beaten up by a group of e-rickshaw (toto) operators for trying to save a shopkeeper who protested against overspeeding in the Botanical Garden area of Howrah on Saturday.
Awadh Kisore Ojha had suffered an internal haemorrhage in the fall, doctors treating him said.
Hours after the incident, police arrested two persons drawing up a murder case against unknown persons at the Botanical Garden police station.
The police investigating the death said Awadh had tried to stop a few e-rickshaw operators from beating up a shopkeeper of Bharpara in Shibpur on Saturday morning. The shopkeeper had protested against the reckless driving by a section of e-rickshaws.
Some e-rickshaw operators allegedly attacked Awadh and he fell on the road, suffering a grievous injury on his head.
A jute mill worker and a local priest, Awadh was first rushed to the South Howrah State General Hospital and later shifted to a private hospital. He succumbed to his injuries in the afternoon.
As the news reached the locality, residents and local traders took to the street to protest “careless driving” by e-rickshaws, locally known as “totos”.
Senior police officers reached the area with a team of Rapid Action Force to prevent violence and cordoned off a part of the locality restricting the movement of vehicles for some time till tempers were soothed.
Residents said there have been several protests in the past against a section of e-rickshaw operators driving recklessly down the Bharpara Road.
On Friday night, Sunny Yadav, a shopkeeper, had apparently placed a piece of stone on the road in front of his shop as a speed breaker, forcing e-rickshaws to slow down.
“Milan Thapa, an e-rickshaw operator, stopped in front of the shop and asked Sunny why he had placed the stone. There was a heated exchange between the two. Milan said he would return in the morning to settle scores and left the place,” said an officer of Botanical Garden police station.
On Saturday morning, eyewitnesses told the police, Milan arrived with a group of e-rickshaw operators and stopped Sunny who was then going to a temple in the locality.
Soon a brawl broke out when Awadh came running to intervene. He was allegedly beaten up and then pushed leading to the fatal fall, the police said.
“We have arrested two youths. Both are in their early 20s. Raids are on to round up other suspects in the case,” the officer said.
E-rickshaw operators and their alleged style of speeding down narrow roads have remained a challenge for the police and the transport department in Howrah since 2014 when Calcutta high court first banned their movement in Howrah and Hooghly.