Kolkata: A policeman suffered a gunshot injury as cops intervened in a fight between two groups from the ruling Trinamool Congress in Basirhat near Kolkata on Monday night.
The area remained tense on Tuesday after police from the South 24 Parganas district last night fired blank shots and lathi-charged a crowd in Sakchura Bazaar of Basirhat.
The Trinamool Congress has not yet reacted, while the Opposition, including the BJP, has slammed Mamata Banerjee's government for alleged failure of law and order.
It started when a group attacked another led by a student leader, Ashraful Jamal alias Bulbul, in a vegetable market in Basirhat Block 1.
Ashraful Jamal escaped and reported the incident to the Basirhat police station, and a contingent of cops arrived at the spot.
Shots were fired towards Mr Jamal, but a 40-year-old constable, Prabhat Sarkar, got hit while trying to save him.
Some people were arrested, police sources said.
Police are investigating whether the firearms were stored to establish dominance in the area before the panchayat elections. The name of another Trinamool Congress leader, Sirajul Besh, has also emerged in the probe.
The student leader who was the target of the attack had complained that a group of people had been moving in the area for several days with the support of Sirajul Besh.
The incident took place near the Trinamool office.
The injured police constable is admitted to RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata.