The blockade at the Kurseong Motor Stand on Thursday. Picture by Vivek Singh

Kurseong, July 30: Around hundred residents of Nayabazaar today split into two groups and staged separate road blockades simultaneously for the immediate arrest of a police sub-inspector, one of the five accused in the murder of a 27-year-old man of the area.

The protests at Motor Stand and Kurseong Tourist Lodge — the distance between the two places is around 500 metres — began at 4pm and ended one hour later.

Barun Sharma was killed at the house of his cousin Pratibha Pradhan in Nayabazaar on Monday night when the service revolver of Tezendra Ghalay, the sub-inspector of Kurseong police station, went off. Sharma had taken Ghalay, along with four constables, to the house when the men in khaki had asked for water. While all the constables were arrested and charged with murder, Ghalay is yet to be picked up.

“Ghalay is the prime accused in the case and has not been arrested yet. Beginning today, we will hamper traffic everyday till the officer is arrested,” said Krishna Singh, one of those who led the blockades.

Pramod Chhetri, another protester, said the duration of the blockades would increase by one hour everyday. He, however, refused to disclose at what time the protest would start everyday.

“We also demand that the probe be handed over to some other agency as the investigators and the accused belong to the same police station and there is always a possibility of bias,” said Chhetri.

The residents will also submit a memorandum containing their demands to the Darjeeling district magistrate tomorrow. “If our demands are not met, we will launch a hunger strike in front of the police station,” said Singh.

Kurseong subdivisional police officer Rakesh Singh said: “Since the accused persons were posted at the Kurseong police station which is carrying out the probe,we will definitely forward the case to the criminal investigation department. We have been looking for Ghaley who has gone into hiding.”