India – In a tragic incident, a 45-year-old physically challenged man was allegedly murdered by his 78-year-old father after he refused to put on a face mask while stepping out in the evening on Saturday in North Kolkata amid the virus pandemic.

The incident took place within the territorial jurisdiction of the Shyampukur Police Station. The accused identified as Banshidhar Mallick, turned himself in to the police at the police station after murdering his son, identified as Sirshendu.

According to a reports, the accused strangulated his son with a strap of cloth after an altercation broke out between the two after the latter’s refusal to wear a face mask.

A police officer stated that at around 7 pm, the accused man came to the police station and surrendered for murdering his son. The victim, who was physically challenged, was killed at around 5:30 pm. A case of murder under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) was registered against the accused.

Upon investigation, the police learnt that the relationship between the father-son duo was not cordial and they often fought over various issues.  The accused is a retired employee of a private company while his physically challenged now-deceased son was unemployed.

A police officer said that over the past few days, the father and his now-deceased son often entered into fights over the latter’s refusal to put on a mask while stepping out of the house. The accused repeatedly requested him to wear a face mask as a precautionary measure against the coronavirus pandemic. However, the victim was not inclined to listen to him and often ventured out without wearing a mask. During an argument over the same issue, the accused strangulated his son in a fit of rage.