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Homemaker in Kolkata arrested for allegedly poisoning two salesmen to dodge payment
Madhumanti Saha, in her 50s, has been arrested from her residence in New Alipore’s P-block for allegedly spiking drinks she had offered to the two salesmen.
Police arrested a woman from south Kolkata was arrested on Friday for allegedly trying to poison two employees of a kitchen chimney manufacturer at her residence.
Madhumanti Saha, a resident of P block in the posh New Alipore neighbourhood, allegedly laced a soft drink with some chemical and offered it to Amit Chakravarty and his associate Somnath Mondal when they visited her home around 3 pm to collect cash for the products she purchased last month because the cheque she issued had bounced.
New Alipore police charged Saha under Section 328 of Indian Penal Code for administering poison or drugs with the intent to cause harm. The crime is punishable with an imprisonment of up to 10 years as well as a fine.
Chakravarty, who was rescued in a semi-conscious condition from Saha’s home by police and his colleagues, was rushed to a private hospital where doctors will keep him under observation for 72 hours.
Saha allegedly served sweets and soft drinks to both Chakravarty and Mondal. “She opened the pack of sweets in front of us but went inside a room and returned with two glasses filled with soft drinks. I had the sweets but did not touch the drink. Chakravarty drank it all. After a while he started collapsing,” Mondal alleged.
“When I tried to call our office Saha snatched my cell phone and locked herself inside the toilet. I picked up Chakravarty’s phone and tried to call but she rushed back and snatched it too. At this point I got scared and fled,” Mondal said. He also alleged that Saha set her pet dogs on him.
“Last month, Saha paid Rs 37,980 through a cheque that bounced. We asked her to pay in cash. After delaying the payment several times she asked us to visit her residence on Saturday. She kept our executives waiting for two hours saying she was withdrawing the money from bank,” said a spokesperson of the company.
“The two men came to our house to collect cash. We gave them water, tea and sweets. Now they are alleging that my mother tried to poison them,” Saha’s minor daughter told the media.
“My mother first gave a cheque of Rs 39,000 but the company said we have to pay Rs 8,000 more towards GST and other charges. The cheque was dishonoured due to some reason,” she said.
“We offered her a 5 per cent discount at the time of purchase. But the offer became null and void because her cheque bounced. So, we asked her to pay the full amount in cash,” said Mondal.
