A hotel owner, who was accidentally shot by a liquor trader in Rajasthan’s Nagaur district, died after the ambulance in which he was being taken to Jodhpur met with an accident.
Police, after questioning others present at the hotel, denied that there was a dispute over delayed food service because of which the shot was fired.
A senior police officer aware of the developments said the incident took place around 4:30 am on Friday in Kharnal village under the Sadar police station limits. Police are searching for the accused liquor trader.
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Additional Superintendent of Police (ASP) Asaram Choudhary said that around 3:30 am, liquor trader Mahipal Bishnoi, a resident of Nandiya village in Bhopalgarh, Jodhpur, arrived at Neelkanth Hotel in Kharnal. Mahipal and the hotel operator, Ram Kumar alias Ramdas, 40, originally from Bihar, knew each other.
After having food at the hotel, Mahipal asked for tea and started showing his country-made pistol to Ram Kumar. “It was then that there was an accidental firing in which Ram Kumar got injured,” the ASP said. Mahipal fled immediately after the incident, police said.
{{/usCountry}}After having food at the hotel, Mahipal asked for tea and started showing his country-made pistol to Ram Kumar. “It was then that there was an accidental firing in which Ram Kumar got injured,” the ASP said. Mahipal fled immediately after the incident, police said.
{{/usCountry}}The bullet struck Ram Kumar in the chest and exited near his shoulder. Hotel owner Ram Prasad Gurjar, who lives nearby, said the hotel staff took Ram Kumar to JLN Hospital in Nagaur in an ambulance and informed the police. After recording his statement and providing primary treatment, doctors referred him to Jodhpur due to his critical condition.
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However, near Khimsar on the Jodhpur highway, a stray animal suddenly came in front of the ambulance. The driver lost control, and the ambulance crashed into the wall of an under-construction drain and overturned. Ram Kumar died in the accident, while the ambulance driver, hotel owner Ram Prasad, and hotel employee Ranjit sustained injuries. All three are undergoing treatment at JLN Hospital in Nagaur, police said.
Ram Kumar’s body has been kept in the mortuary, and his family has been informed.
Following the firing, teams from the Sadar Police Station, Kotwali Police Station, the District Special Team (DST), and the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) reached the spot. Police inspected the hotel, found bloodstains on the floor, collected evidence, and questioned local residents to reconstruct the sequence of events.
ASP Asaram Choudhary said the investigation has confirmed that the shot was fired accidentally while Mahipal Bishnoi was showing the pistol. Police teams are conducting raids to arrest the absconding accused..