Two men have been arrested in connection with the murder of the man whose body was found lying on a service road of EM Bypass near the Salt Lake stadium Metro station on Monday morning.

The victim was later identified as Sanjit Das, a resident of Duttabad.

The post-mortem report was inconclusive, leaving police confused over whether the man was a victim of a road accident or was murdered.

Once his identity was established, the police launched a search for the person with whom Das was last seen before his death.

Sources said it appeared that the majority of the injuries on the victim’s body were caused by a road accident. However, a deep wound behind one of his ears had left the police and the autopsy surgeon wondering whether it was homicidal in nature.

Officers said they soon learnt that he had a fight with two of his neighbours on a trivial issue on Sunday night near his home.

“That was the last time anyone saw him alive. He did not return home. The next morning, his body was found a few hundred metres from his neighbourhood,” an officer said.

The victim’s brother, Tukai Das, lodged a complaint with Phoolbagan police station on Tuesday, alleging that his brother had been killed by unknown men around 4.30am on Monday.

After questioning neighbours and witnesses, the sleuths zeroed in on Rabi Dutta, 45, and Mantu Das, 42. Dutta is a resident of Shib Krishna Das Lane in Phoolbagan, while Das is from Duttabad. Both have been arrested for murder and remanded in police custody.

“According to the preliminary findings, the victim was engaged in odd jobs and apparently did not have any enemies. Till now we have not found any criminal history of the accused men. We are not ruling out the possibility of the accused harbouring a grudge against the victim,” said a senior officer of the eastern suburban division.