Sutandra Chatterjee, a 27-year-old event manager from Chandernagore, died in a car accident on National Highway 2 while traveling to Gaya for work. Her car overturned after being chased by another vehicle. Her colleagues, who were also in the car, said the men in the other vehicle were drunk and had been harassing her on the road.
The accident happened around 12:30 AM near Panagarh, 150 km from Kolkata. Chatterjee was sitting in the front passenger seat and died at the scene due to severe bleeding. Two of her colleagues were injured.
Chase and Collision
According to Mintu Mondal, who later filed a police complaint, the men in the other car kept honking, making obscene gestures at Chatterjee, and blocking their way. They overtook Chatterjee’s car multiple times and even hit it several times over a 10-km stretch. Fearing danger, Chatterjee’s driver, Rajdeo Sharma, tried to speed away.
“The men seemed drunk. They chased us, hit our car, and didn’t stop. After our car overturned, they stood for a moment, then ran away, leaving their car behind,” said Mondal.
The police have seized both vehicles and checked CCTV footage. Durgapur-Asansol police commissioner Sunil Kumar Choudhary said, “The accident happened when Chatterjee’s car tried to overtake the white car and lost control.” However, her colleagues insist that the crash was caused by repeated ramming by the other vehicle.
Family’s Demand for Justice
Chatterjee was the only earning member of her family. After her father, singer Sukanta Chatterjee, died of cancer, she supported her mother and two grandmothers while running her own event management company, Moonwalk, in Gaya.
Her mother, Tanushree, has rejected the police’s explanation and demanded arrests. “I lost my husband eight months ago. Now my daughter is gone too. The men who did this must be punished,” she said.
Despite the FIR, no arrests have been made yet. Police are investigating, but the case raises serious concerns about road safety and women’s security while traveling at night.
