Do-gooder TMC BLA Buchu’s death a day after birthday shocks Dum Dum para

Kolkata: Just hours after ringing in his 40th birthday with friends and family, Arup Banerjee's celebrations turned into a night of horror that has left an entire Jawpur Road neighbourhood in Dum Dum shocked. A contractual worker with the South Dum Dum Municipality and an active Trinamool Congress worker, Banerjee was among the most well-known and approachable faces in the locality. Fondly called ‘Buchu,' his number was saved on nearly every resident's phone."If someone was sick, needed hospitalisation, or even during a death in the family, he was always one call away," said Krishna Banerjee, a neighbour. "He was well connected and always ready to help."The sea of people from Arup's locality, who kept trickling in, was testimony to his popularity in the neighbourhood. "Only a few weeks ago I suffered a stroke at home. He was the one who rushed me to the hospital. I cannot imagine that he is no more," said Tapas Das, who was waiting for Arup's body.Family members said that on Thursday evening, Banerjee was celebrating his birthday with friends when he rushed back home around 9.30 pm after receiving a call from his wife. Their four-year-old son had fallen off the bed while playing and fractured his right arm. He immediately took his family to RG Kar Medical College and Hospital for treatment. What followed there, however, proved fatal.His father has alleged murder, squarely blaming hospital authorities for what he termed a "lackadaisical attitude" on the part of the hospital authorities. "He was a very responsible son and father. When he was stuck inside the lift, we prayed before the hospital authorities to call the fire brigade and open the lift, but the authorities did nothing. They misbehaved with us, made us run up and down the stairs and asked us to note the emergency numbers mentioned inside other lifts to call security personnel and PWD officers in charge of the lift. Is this how hospital authorities should deal in case of an emergency?" cried Amal Banerjee, the deceased's father.His brother-in-law, Krishnendu Sinha, said even when the lives of all three of them were in danger, he was more concerned about the well-being of his son and wife and tried to get them out of the lift even as he suffered injuries. "His wife is inconsolable. She is under immense trauma and is also under treatment at the hospital," said Sinha, adding that the son, Ayush, underwent surgery on the fractured arm on Friday."I was his private tutor till class 10. Years down the line, he would always show me the respect that a teacher deserves, Sanatan Mondal, a neighbour and his former teacher. A native of Jawpur, the Banerjee family has lived in the locality for generations. Their ancestral home was later redeveloped into a multi-storeyed building, where he lived on the third floor with his wife, son, and parents. He married in 2020. Locals also recalled his active involvement in politics as a Trinamool Congress worker, where he served as an assistant booth-level agent and played a key role in the SIR process."He was a wonderful human being. We still can't believe he died such a tragic death. He will always be missed," said Trinath Das, a party functionary in Dum Dum.