Arrested TMC leader says not involved in lynching of student

Trinamool Congress leader Tapas Mallick, prime accused in the murder of an ITI-student in Diamond Harbour of South 24 Parganas district, today claimed that he has been "framed" and had no role in the incident.
"I have no clue about the incident... I know nothing about it... I have been framed," Mallick said before he was taken inside CID headquarters Bhawani Bhawan here for questioning.
Mallick along with six other accused were brought to the CID headquarters in connection with the lynching of the ITI student on suspicion of being a cattle lifter.
Mallick, TMC Upa-Panchayat Pradhan, was arrested from near Duttapukur in neighbouring North 24 Parganas district on Thursday night and remanded to 13 days' police custody. Nine others were also been named in the FIR by the youth's family.

According to CID officials, Mallick was grilled for over an hour. At one point of time, he was grilled along with the other accused.
"We are trying to reconstruct what exactly happened on May 9. We have to get the entire picture of the incident," a senior officer of the CID told PTI on condition of anonymity.

Meanwhile, the victim's family feared "partiality" by the CID and demanded CBI probe.
"We are still not sure whether we will get justice or not... There are accused persons who are still roaming. We cannot rely on the CID. We want CBI to probe into the case," victim's father Kartik Purkait said.

Kaushik, who had gone to visit his aunt in the area, was roaming around when he was severely beaten up by a mob on suspicion that he stole a buffalo. He died hours later at S S K M Hospital in Kolkata.
The incident triggered public outrage in the area with a mob vandalising houses of the accused when the youth's body was taken to the house of his aunt in a procession on Wednesday.