Neighbours gather around the shanty in which they found Pintu with multiple stab wounds on Thursday morning. He died later in hospital. Picture by Sanjoy Chattopadhyaya

Azizul Mollah, a tea stall-owner in Bhowanipore, on Thursday morning stabbed to death his younger brother Pintu and went into hiding thereafter. An alleged affair between Azizul and Pintu’s wife, Sanura Bibi, was apparently behind the murder.

According to police, Azizul, 45, lived with his two brothers, Ahidul and Pintu, 28, in the shanties behind the doctors’ quarters at SSKM Hospital. “Azizul was a bachelor, while the other two brothers lived there with their wives and children,” said Jawed Shamim, the deputy commissioner of police (south).

Residents of the shanties woke up to Pintu’s screams on Thursday morning. “They immediately rushed over, only to find Pintu, a waiter at a fast-food centre, lying on the floor with multiple wounds on his body. Some residents saw Azizul running away,” said an officer of Bhowanipore police station. The knife used to stab Pintu is yet to be recovered.

Pintu was rushed to SSKM Hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries after a couple of hours. “He was stabbed 17 times, mostly in the chest, abdomen and underarm. He was bleeding profusely. We tried our best to save him, but could not,” said a doctor.

A preliminary investigation revealed that Azizul was having an affair with Sanura Bibi. After Pintu found it out a couple of months ago, he sent his wife back to her parents’ house. He often had heated arguments with Azizul over this.

“According to Ahidul’s statement, the two brothers had an altercation last night and Azizul threatened Pintu with dire consequences. The accused possibly entered his brother’s room and stabbed him early on Thursday, while the rest of the family was asleep,” said an officer.