A 24-year-old man was allegedly beaten to death by a friend and his father during a scuffle on Sunday over splitting the bill of alcohol they consumed on Saturday night, police said.

The friend reportedly called his father to settle the matter, but the father and son allegedly beat up the victim, resulting in his death, the police said

The incident happened near Sakher Bazar on Sunday morning. The father and son have been arrested.

According to the officers, Bapi Adhikary, 24, and Krishna Jana, in his 30s, who are known to be friends, were consuming alcohol on Saturday night.

Police said Adhikary works as a daily wage labourer at construction sites.

“An altercation broke out between the two regarding the payment and the division of expenses. The argument escalated into a scuffle. During the confrontation, Krishna reportedly called his father, Dipu, to settle the matter,” said an officer of Thakurpukur police station.

However, after Dipu arrived, he and his son allegedly started to beat Adhikary, causing serious injuries.

Adhikary was taken to Vidyasagar State General Hospital, where he was declared dead, the police said.

Following the incident, both Krishna and Dipu were arrested by a team from Thakurpukur police station.

The incident happened on the road near Sakher Bazar.

“The place of occurrence has been secured and cordoned off. We are trying to collect forensic evidence from the spot,” said the officer.

Police said the motorcycle on which Dipu had gone to the spot had been found and seized.

Police said the father and son would be produced before the court on Monday. The body has been sent for post-mortem.

There were multiple injury marks on the body, a police officer said.

“Initially, it was Adhikary who was beating up Krishna. But once his father reached the spot, they both started beating up Adhikary. Raw punches and kicks caused internal damage,” said an officer of the homicide wing of the detective department of the Kolkata Police.

A few weeks ago, another case of lynching was reported at Parnasree where a trader from Rajasthan was beaten to death by a group of men for allegedly cheating them with fake gold ornaments.

“The worst part is when people tend to take the law into their own hands. You may disagree with what others are saying or doing. Even if they are committing a crime, it is not the duty of civilians to take the law into their own hands and start punishing offenders. There is a law and a justice system. In all such cases, the police or the court should be approached,” said a senior police officer of the city police.

Officers of Thakurpukur police station have started a murder case against the father and son.