Patit Paban Tah’s picture on his office ID card

Burdwan, Feb. 24: The family of one of the four persons arrested in connection with the murder of two CPM leaders in Burdwan said today that he had Trinamul links, though the party has claimed otherwise.

“My father is a clerk in the records section of the district headquarters. He always takes part in Trinamul procession and other party activities. Our family supports Trinamul. I am a spokesperson for the Trinamul Chhatra Parishad at Burdwan University,” said Patit Paban Tah’s son Pritam.

A CPM leader in Dewandighi said Patit Paban was “locked in a tussle” with Pradip Tah, one of the slain leaders, over the control of unions in sponge iron factories and rice mills in the area. “This could be the reason behind the murder,” said Mehboob Alam, the secretary of the CPM’s Burdwan zonal committee.

The Telegraph has found that Patit Paban is a member of the Trinamul-affiliated Government Employees’ Federation and an active Trinamul worker. He was earlier a member of the Congress-affiliated State Government Employees’ Federation but switched to the Trinamul-led union after the Assembly polls last year.

A Trinamul general secretary in Calcutta suggested it was too early to pinpoint political affiliations. “We are getting contradictory reports about the political identities of those arrested. This is embarrassing. We have sought a detailed report from our Burdwan district unit,” he said.

So far, four of the 22 people named in the FIR — Patit Paban, Surojit Tah, Chhoton Chakraborty and Bhupal Goswami — have been arrested.

Tinkori Ghosh, the father of Jhantu and Mantu, two others named in the FIR, said the duo were “Trinamul workers”. “They always take part in party events in the locality. The CPM has hatched a conspiracy against them.”

Police officers refused comment on the political affiliations of the accused. “We have got certain names in connection with the murders of the two CPM leaders but we are not aware of their political identities,” said Burdwan police chief H.M.S. Meerza.

The Burdwan Trinamul leadership denied the accused had ties with the party. “The party has no links with those arrested,” said Sushanta Ghosh, a district leader.