Kolkata: A late-night violent altercation over rash driving broke out in the heart of Park Street on Sunday morning, leaving three persons severely injured—including an on-duty police officer—after a speeding car nearly hit pedestrians, resulting in a public brawl and a subsequent attack on responding law enforcement officers near Park Street.According to police, the trouble began around 4 am on Sunday at the otherwise busy crossing of Russell Street and Park Street, directly in front of the entrance of The Park Hotel. A dark-coloured sedan was allegedly travelling at high speed from west to east in a rash and reckless manner. Witnesses said that the vehicle narrowly missed hitting a pedestrian and his friend who were crossing the intersection.When the pedestrians confronted the occupants of the car and forced it to stop, a heated argument ensued. The situation rapidly escalated into physical violence as the occupants of the vehicle allegedly restrained the duo and reportedly launched a physical assault using fists, blows and kicks. During the scuffle, one of the assailants struck one of the pedestrians on the left side of his abdomen with a sharp-edged object, inflicting a severe bleeding cut injury.As the violent melee unfolded in full public view, a night motorcycle patrol unit attached to Park Street police station, stationed nearby as part of the festive security deployment, rushed to the spot to intervene and quell the disturbance. The injured claimed that the police tried to protect the motorists, leading to a heated exchange even with cops. Cops said they were detaining motorists and merely trying to clear the road for traffic.However, the pedestrians soon turned their aggression towards the cops. Prasenjit Dey, a Kolkata Police home guard attached to Park Street police station, was wrongfully restrained, physically assaulted and obstructed from performing his official duties while attempting to rescue the injured victims and restore order by three men, including Supratib Saha, one of the pedestrians who claimed he could have been seriously injured in the accident and later attacked by motorists.Additional force from Park Street police station quickly arrived at the scene and rescued the patrol officer and the injured pedestrians. The injured pedestrian was immediately rushed to SSKM Hospital for medical treatment and emergency care, while the injured home guard officer was shifted to Calcutta National Medical College and Hospital (CNMC) for medical evaluation.Following the incident, police detained three persons—Supratib Saha, Ankur Roy and Jagjyot Singh—for questioning in connection with the accident, assault and obstruction of public servants. Officers are currently investigating whether the speeding vehicle was attempting to evade a police naka check set up in the area, which led to the erratic driving and the subsequent sequence of events.Two separate cases have been registered at Park Street police station under relevant sections pertaining to rash driving, dangerous driving, voluntarily causing hurt with dangerous weapons, criminal intimidation, assault on a public servant to deter them from duty and wrongful restraint. Senior officers confirmed that CCTV footage from the intersection and the entrance of the hotel is being retrieved and analysed to establish the exact sequence of events.The incident occurred just a day after Mahalaya, as Kolkata steps into the festive spirit ahead of Durga Puja. With streets witnessing heavy night traffic and heightened festive footfall, Kolkata Police have significantly stepped up naka checking and night patrolling across major thoroughfares to maintain law and order and curb drunk and negligent driving.
