The video grab of Roy with the injured man

Dinhata (Cooch Behar), Feb. 7: Monindra Roy could have easily joined thousands of other Forward Bloc supporters and run for his life when police opened fire in front of the subdivisional office here on Tuesday. Instead, he braved the bullets and carried an injured party worker to the subdivisional hospital, located 200 metres away.

The man he tried to save died at the hospital, but Roy’s action was caught on a video camcorder, held by a local youth, and the clips have now made him the talk of the town.

The 33-year-old farmer from Petla village, 7km from Dinhata town, today recounted the day’s events.

“I and a few other youths were with the women-supporters at the law-violation programme. After we crossed the third police barricade and entered the subdivisional office campus, we were attacked by baton-wielding policemen. I managed to sneak into one of the office-rooms with a few others,” said Roy.

“I could see Nur Islam, a party worker from Baronachina village, standing outside, bleeding from his head and arguing with the policemen. They, in turn, started bursting tear gas shells.”

The lathicharge and bursting of tear gas shells continued for 10 minutes or so as Monindra and the others waited for the clash to end.

“Suddenly, I saw an employee locking the room. I ran out and heard the sound of gunshots. Everybody was running out of the campus. I saw party flags lying scattered on the ground,” Roy said.

When he bowed down to collect the flags, Roy could feel the bullets whizzing past him. “Then I saw a body near the gate and heard someone else yell. An elderly man, wearing dhoti-punjabi, collapsed before me, blood oozing out of his chest. I ran towards him and picked him up. With the flags still in my hand, I carried him out of the office campus.”

Roy ran about 50-60 metres before stopping near the memorial of former Bloc leader, the late Kamal Guha.

Two supporters helped Roy carry the man, later identified as Niren Haldar, to the hospital, but he died soon after. “I could not save him,” said Roy, who sometimes serves as a casual worker at the literacy mission in his village.

Roy, an admirer of Kamal Guha, has been with the Bloc for the past 22 years. “I was a student of Class V when I first walked in a party procession.”

Nripen Roy, the Dinhata subdivisional secretary of the Bloc, said: “We appreciate his courage, love and dedication.”