Kolkata corpse case: Curious, selfie-takers flock house

The residence of Partha De, the man found living with the corpse of his sister, has become a big draw, with curious people flocking at the sprawling British-era bungalow, clicking photographs and speaking in hushed tones about the macabre incident.

The red-coloured bungalow at 3, Robinson Street in south Kolkata has become nothing short of a tourist and gossip spot post the shocking discovery by police.

Police last week stumbled upon the maggot-infested skeletons of Debjani De and two dogs while investigating the death of Arabinda De, the owner of the house whose burnt body was found inside a bathroom.

Nestled by leafy palms and a variety of tall trees, the "house of ghosts" as described by visitors sits in a quiet upscale neighbourhood dotted with business establishments and other residential buildings.

People who work in offices in the vicinity would pass by the building without so much as a second glance. Now it is a hot spot for selfie-lovers.

"I pass by it during my office hours. Never for once I could imagine such a thing would happen in the area. It seems strange that nobody bothered about that household," Sumit Banerjee, who works in an office close to the house, told IANS.

Banerjee said it reflects the disappearing "para (neighbourhood) culture" synonymous with Kolkata.

As he spoke about the importance of a neighbourhood community, people craned their necks up to point their cell phones at the dust-encrusted and covered third floor window of the room where Partha hid the corpse.

It has become virtually impossible to distinguish media persons from curious visitors and onlookers.

Why has this macabre incident consumed public attention?

"Nowadays, we only get to read about politics and such issues. This was something new even among the most horrific crime stories we read. Something similar to what we read in Sherlock Holmes stories," said a man who works in the IT sector.

A group of middle-aged men attired in formals sauntered over to the house for the sake of being in a place that was the scene of an unusual incident.

"This is a house of ghosts. We wanted to be here because this is the scene of a highly-publicised event. We wanted a slice of it," one of the three admitted candidly.

At the centre of the gossip is the discussion on Partha's fate.

"Do you think he will be able to live a normal life after all this?" asks one retired clerk while another says Partha was not normal in the first place.

But as a 21-year-old university student puts it, there is no escaping the fact that people remain isolated even in the 21st century with social networking and gadgets.

"I don't think people really care what neighbours are doing, either that or they are simply too caught up in their own world. The 'para culture' we knew of is non-existent," the student told IANS.