The Shahs of Madan Chatterjee Lane might not have to leave the city that has been their home for a hundred years, after all.

Two days after Prem Chand Shah?s utility store was ransacked and he and son Ashish were pressured by their tormentors ? with some help from Girish Park police ? to withdraw their complaint, police are questioning witnesses and promising action.

?We will arrest all those persons whose names have been mentioned in the complaint by Shah as responsible for the damage to the store,? D. Dutta Burman, officer-in-charge of Girish Park police station, said on Thursday.

?We will, however, charge-sheet the shop-owners too, as a counter-complaint has been lodged by members of the local puja committee,? he added, while refuting allegations of having urged the Shahs to withdraw their complaint on Tuesday evening.

Police action took a virtual U-turn late on Wednesday with Rajiv Kumar, deputy commissioner of police (central division), visiting the Madan Chatterjee Lane store.

?DCsaab told us to carry on as usual and assured us nobody could harm us,? Prem Chand told Metro, adding that goods worth Rs 70,000 had been damaged in the attack.

On Thursday afternoon, Ashish and the witnesses went to Girish Park police station in the afternoon and submitted individual written statements on the Tuesday afternoon assault on the shop and the father-son duo. This had following the Shahs? refusal to hand over sherbet and sugar worth Rs 395 to some neighbourhood dadas on Monday evening.

Members of the 7 Palli Sarbojanin Durga Puja, who had allegedly carried out the attack, continued to blame the Shahs for the flare-up. ?We had taken the goods on credit, but when we went to settle the dues the next day, Ashish abused us,? claimed Pradeep Roy, a member of the puja committee.