Chinsurah, March 30: A Calcutta police constable was arrested last night on the charge of hiring killers to murder a former colleague whose wife he was allegedly eyeing.

A Hooghly police team came to the city to pick up Sudip Banerjee, 26, from the South Traffic Guard office in the Maidan area .

Sacked Calcutta police constable Gopal Das, who was attacked in the Konnagar area of Uttarpara — about 20km from the city — on March 9, told the police he suspected Sudip. The inspector in charge of Uttarpara police station, Prabir Roy, led the team last night.

Gopal, 35, was sitting in his cyber café when two young men walked in and shot at him. The bullets just grazed Gopal and as he started running, the duo hurled bombs at him.

Vegetable vendor Sheikh Yasin was injured in one of the explosions and was admitted to Calcutta Medical College and Hospital.

“Gopal alleged that Sudip was involved in the attempt on his life. He also said Sudip was eyeing his wife. The two, who have known each other for years, had quarrelled over the matter six months ago,” said Roy.

Sudip lives in his official quarters in Chandernagore, 30km from Uttarpara.

The inspector said the po-lice could prove that Sudip had plotted Gopal’s murder.

“Calcutta police had been informed about the arrest beforehand,” said Serampore subdivisional police officer Ajay Thakur.

After the attack on Gopal, Sudip had been called to Uttarpara police station, but he did not turn up.

He was produced before the Serampore additional chief judicial magistrate today and remanded in five days’ police custody.

A search is on for the duo who attacked Gopal.

A senior Hooghly officer said Gopal was dismissed from service last month after he was charged with rape. He is now on bail. A north Calcutta woman had accused Gopal of raping her in 2006.

“He was dismissed after a departmental probe,” a senior Calcutta officer said.

During interrogation last night, Sudip apparently told the police he loved Gopal’s wife but denied engaging killers to murder him.