The decomposed body of a 57-year-old man was found in his Salt Lake home on Friday morning.

Neighbours said a stench was emanating from the house at GC 54, and alerted police.

Officers from Bidhannagar (south) police station arrived at the house and found it locked from the inside.

The door was broken open, and Sujoy Dutta was found lying on the floor. He was taken to a hospital where he was declared dead.

“The body had rigor mortis on it. It was a few days old. The preliminary post-mortem opinion suggested that he had died of a cardiac arrest,” said an officer of Bidhannagar city police.

Police sources said that during the investigation, it was found that Dutta was unmarried. He was unemployed and was supported by his three sisters.

Two of them stay in New Town and one in Mumbai, an officer said.

Neighbours said Dutta was not seen in the locality for the past few days.

The police said the possibility of foul play had been ruled out till Friday evening. An unnatural death case has been started.

None of his family members has lodged any complaint with the police.

Several elderly Calcuttans who stay alone are vulnerable to unattended ailments and often fall prey to loneliness.

Last month, a retired college teacher who lived alone at his GD Block home in
Salt Lake was found dead inside the washroom of his house.