
The son of a north Bengal-based IPS officer has been charged with attempt to murder for allegedly holding a driver captive and assaulting him, the second time in four months that a criminal case has been filed against him for a similar offence.
Shashesh Chatterjee, a graduate from the National University of Juridical Sciences, stands accused of attacking Sudipto Ghosh, 34, after pinning him to a chair at his Bally home on Thursday evening.
The victim, hired by the police to drive the IPS officer's Maruti SX4, was admitted to Apollo Gleneagles Hospitals with scalp and other injuries.
Shashesh hadn't even been brought in for interrogation till late on Friday, although Howrah police have registered a case against him under sections 307 (attempt to murder) and 326 (voluntarily cause grievous hurt by dangerous weapons) of the Indian Penal Code.
He is the son of Subhasish Chatterjee, a deputy inspector-general of police (DIG) posted in north Bengal.
Sudipto's father Pulak, who filed a complaint with Bally police station around 1.30am on Friday, said his son had reported for duty at the Chatterjees' home in Kabulikuthi Professorpara on Thursday afternoon.
"Kasturi Chatterjee (the IPS officer's wife) called me around 4.06pm to say that my son had had an argument with her and that I should go there immediately. Since it was time to open my shop (a fast food outlet), I couldn't go. It wasn't the first time that there had been an argument, so I thought the matter would be resolved," Pulak told Metro.
When Sudipto's wife Mitali tried to contact him over the phone, the Chatterjees allegedly didn't allow him to speak. "Every time I called my husband's number, either the DIG's son or his wife would take the call and say he was busy," said Mitali.
The young woman said she tried to speak to Sudipto at least thrice between 5.30pm and 9pm, after which his phone was switched off. Kasturi later informed the driver's family that he had been admitted to Apollo Gleneagles after falling and injuring himself.
Hospital sources said Sudipto was admitted at 10.48pm with scalp and head injuries. Doctors stitched a gash on his scalp and kept him in the neuro intensive care unit, from where he was shifted to a general ward after his condition improved on Friday afternoon.
"My husband's face was swollen and he needed five stitches on his scalp. When I reached the hospital, he told me that the DIG's son forced him down on a chair and hit him repeatedly," said Mitali, who was in her parents' home in Tollygunge for Bhai Phonta when she came to know of the incident.
Shashesh's mother Kasturi contested the allegations. "We never treated Sudipto like a driver. He lives in the neighbourhood. He had borrowed around Rs 5 lakh from us over four years. When I asked him to return the money on Thursday, he refused and argued with my son," she said.
Kasturi also claimed that Sudipto had "a nerve problem" that caused him to trip and fall. Her husband couldn't be reached for comment.
In July, Shashesh had been arrested for assaulting policemen on the Kalyani Expressway in an allegedly inebriated state. He has been out on bail since.