The clash took place on Saturday when the locals tried to stop the developer’s men from filling up the waterbody, measuring 150 cottahs, in front of Purbasa Housing Estate at Ultadanga. The armed security guards of the private developer reportedly fired six rounds in the air. Following palpable tension, policemen were deployed near the pond.

The locals, who alleged that state Transport Minister Subhas Chakraborty rushed to the spot and sided with the realtors, said they will not allow any construction work to take place there.

Subesh Ray, senior vice-president of the Mani Group, which has plans of developing a housing estate, a hospital and a five-star hotel at the disputed site, said, “The locals are making a hill out of a mole. There is no waterbody in the area in question.”