District police in Alipurduar arrested a Trinamul panchayat member on Tuesday night in connection with a youth's murder earlier this month.
Arrested Laxmi Mochari is a member of Birpara-I panchayat in Madarihat block.
District Trinamul leaders have said that the arrested Laxmi would not be allowed to participate in any political activity of the party till she emerges cleanly from the case.
Sources said that on August 23, Manoj Lohar, a resident of Birpara tea estate, was allegedly murdered by Pratap Sha and his associates over a dispute over the sharing of the profits apparently earned from selling coal stolen from rail wagons.
Sha and others dumped Lohar’s body in a stream. Police recovered it on August 26 and arrested Sha and his aides.
Laxmi, Sha’s sister, came under the police scanner as during the investigation, they found bloodstains on the stairs of the panchayat member’s house.
“We suspect Manoj Lohar was murdered there and later his body was dumped in the stream. That is why Laxmi Mochari has been arrested,” said a police officer.
A district Trinamul leader, who spoke on anonymity, admitted it was a loss of face for them.
“She was elected as a panchayat member just a month ago and now, she has been arrested in connection with a murder case. This is indeed a loss of face for the party,” said the leader.
A section of Trinamul leaders said that ahead of the polls, they requested district-level party leaders not to give Laxmi a ticket.
Another section of party leaders sounded perturbed over the formation of the upcoming board at Birpara-I panchayat.
“This is because there are 30 seats in the panchayat and Trinamul and BJP have won 15 seats each. If the board is to be formed now, Laxmi cannot vote. Hence her arrest now has created a tough situation for the party,” said a Trinamul leader of Birpara.
The arrest also made the local BJP leadership react. “People of Birpara can now realise who they have backed at the panchayat polls. These people have criminal connections and yet Trinamul gave them tickets,” said Manoj Tigga, the BJP president of Alipurduar district.
