Residents of Birpara in Alipurduar district observed a 12-hour strike on Saturday to protest the kidnap-murder of a local youth whose body was later recovered.

Police nabbed the prime accused of the case who allegedly confessed to the whereabouts of the body, which was recovered on Saturday.

Sources said that on August 23, Manoj Lohar, 26, a resident of Birpara tea estate, went missing. His family members alleged that Pratap Sha, a local resident, had called on Manoj at home. The youth left with him and didn’t return.

Around midnight, Ravinder, Manoj’s brother, went to Pratap’s place. He saw his brother’s two-wheeler there. As Ravinder inquired about Manoj, Pratap allegedly threatened him.

Ravinder returned home. On August 24, his family filed a complaint at Birpara police station, accusing Pratap and aides of abducting Manoj.

“Preliminary probe suggested the deceased, the accused and some others were involved in an illegal coal business. They engaged children to collect coal from railway wagons and sold it illegally to local brickfields. It seems Manoj Oraon got into a dispute with the accused and some others over sharing the proceeds,” said a police source.

Based on the complaint filed by Manoj's family, the police began a probe and arrested Pawan Sha and Raju Sha, both Pratap's aides, on August 24. "During interrogation, the duo admitted to killing Manoj, but misguided the police on where they had dumped the body," a source said.

As Pratap had not been arrested, Birpara residents called a strike on Saturday, which affected trade and the operations of the tea estate.

Pratap, who was arrested on Saturday afternoon, revealed during interrogation that Manoj’s body was dumped in Ekti river near Shishubari Road bridge. The police went to the spot and recovered the body.