The bodies of a retired bank employee and his adopted son were recovered under mysterious circumstances from a locked residential flat in the Sethbagan Lane area of Dum Dum, in the northern outskirts of Kolkata, on Friday evening, 13 November 2026. The deceased have been identified as Tapan Kumar Chattopadhyay, a senior citizen and former private-sector bank employee, and his adopted son, M.D. Hossain, alias Surya. The cause of death remains under investigation pending post-mortem reports.

How the Bodies Were Discovered

Neighbours grew concerned after neither Chattopadhyay nor Hossain had been seen stepping out of their residence since Thursday, and repeated knocking at the door drew no response. On Friday evening, they alerted the police, who arrived at the flat, broke open the lock, and entered the premises. Upon entry, officers detected a strong smell of gas inside the apartment, which had been locked from the inside.

The two bodies were recovered from two separate rooms within the flat. Both bodies have since been sent for post-mortem examination.

Key Evidence and Early Findings

According to sources within the state police, a deep and fresh injury mark was detected behind one of the ears of Chattopadhyay, which investigators believe may have been the cause of his death. Police have not ruled out the possibility of murder. Investigators are also examining whether the gas smell inside the locked flat played a role in one or both deaths.

Notably, the bodies were found in separate rooms — a detail that investigators say adds to the complexity of the case.

Theory Under Investigation

An officer familiar with the investigation said one early line of inquiry involves the possibility that Hossain may have fatally attacked Chattopadhyay while in an inebriated state, and subsequently died by suicide out of repentance. However, the officer cautioned that this remains an unverified hypothesis at this stage. 'Probably, that was the cause of his death. It might be possible that the adopted son first killed Chattopadhyay in an inebriated state and then committed suicide out of repentance,' the officer was quoted as saying.

Police stressed that the full picture will only emerge once detailed post-mortem reports are available. The gas smell inside the flat is also being factored into the investigation as a potential contributing element.

Background and Context

The two men — a retired employee of an unnamed private commercial bank and his adopted son — had been living together at the Dum Dum flat for some time, according to neighbours. This case adds to a pattern of mysterious deaths in locked premises in the Kolkata metropolitan region that have come to light in recent months, often requiring forensic investigation to establish the sequence of events. The West Bengal Police are conducting the inquiry.

What Happens Next

Investigating officers are awaiting the detailed post-mortem findings before arriving at any firm conclusions. Depending on the reports, the case could be registered under homicide or treated as a double unnatural-death case. The Dum Dum police station is leading the probe, and further forensic examination of the flat — particularly regarding the source and concentration of the gas — is expected in the coming days.