The match was decided in the first half where East found their goals from Nigerian Edeh Chidi, who scored from a penalty in the seventh minute, and Lalrindika Ralte (30th) overtook Arrows, who had found the lead first off Alwyn George (2nd).
Ahead of their Feb 9 derby against Mohun Bagan, East Bengal climbed past Churchill Brothers to get the top of the standings with 39 points from 19 matches while Arrows stayed back on 19 points from 18 matches.
The only notable incident in the second half was the ejection of substitute forward Manandeep Singh in the 75th minute, after which East Bengal endured the remaining time with 10 men and conserved the lead to ensure the full quota of three points.
Arrows sprung into action right after the kickoff when Vishal Kumar showed the utility of a good throw as he hurled the ball deep inside the East Bengal box.
Milan Singh headed the ball along to reach Alwyn George on top of the six-yard box. The Arrows striker made no mistake with his shot to give a fine lead.
Stunned by the early setback, East Bengal sought to buck up their offensive and attacked with more purpose in search of the equaliser.
East Bengal did not have to wait for long to see the scores levelled as the team earned a penalty in the 5th minute. MORE