A first-year law student allegedly shot dead a woman classmate inside the classroom of their private college in Punjab’s Tarn Taran district before pulling the trigger on himself, police said on Monday, adding that accused is in critical condition.
The incident took place in a classroom at the Mai Bhago Law College in Usma village of the district before lectures for the day were set to begin on Monday morning. According to police, the accused, identified as Prince Raj (20) from Mallian village, entered the classroom and shot at the victim, Sandeep Kaur (20) from Naushehra Pannuan village, with a pistol from point blank range. Raj then turned the gun on himself and pulled the trigger as fellow students watched in shock.
“The incident took place in the area falling in jurisdiction of Sarhali Police Station, wherein a first-year male student shot dead his female classmate before shooting himself. The girl student died on the spot, while the shooter is in critical condition,” said deputy superintendent of police (DSP) Jagbir Singh.
CCTV footage of the incident, which HT has verified through the police, showed Raj speaking with Kaur and another student in the back of the classroom. Raj then got up from his desk, turned back and shot Kaur on her head. He then shot himself on the head and fell on the floor. Other students witnessed the events in horror before rushing out of the classroom.
{{/usCountry}}CCTV footage of the incident, which HT has verified through the police, showed Raj speaking with Kaur and another student in the back of the classroom. Raj then got up from his desk, turned back and shot Kaur on her head. He then shot himself on the head and fell on the floor. Other students witnessed the events in horror before rushing out of the classroom.
{{/usCountry}}Police took Kaur’s body into custody, and sent it for a post-morten in the afternoon, while Raj was rushed to a local hospital. The accused remains under medical supervision, and is said to be in critical condition, they added.
While a motive is yet to be established, Tarn Taran senior superintendent of police (SSP) Surendra Lamba said the police is investigating the “friendship angle” in the case.
The victim’s elder sister Sumanpreet Kaur told reporters: "He once visited our house and proposed to my sister. In polite words, she said no to him. She told him that she does not go to college for such kinds of activities, but for study”.
Her mother Harjinder Kaur added that her daughter was engaged to someone else.
“We have seized the mobile phones of both students and sent them for forensic examination to understand the nature of their relationship and the events leading up to the shooting,” the SSP added.
Even as a probe was underway to determine the events leading up to the tragedy, the victim’s mother questioned the college’s safety protocol and how the accused brought a gun to the institute’s premises. “I work hard to educate my children so they can have a future. My daughter left for college normally today,” Harjinder Kaur said. “The question is: How did a student carry a pistol into a classroom? Does the college have any security system at all?”
The SSP said that probe was underway to ascertain from where Raj procured the pistol from. “This is not a licensed pistol. This could be ascertained only after Raj wakes up,” he said.
HT tried to reach out to the institute for a response but didn’t receive one at the time of going to press.