RANCHI: A three-year-old boy died after a pistol allegedly handed to him by his maternal uncle went off while he was playing with it in Jharkhand's Bokaro on Saturday morning, police said.
The incident occurred when the toddler Sahil Ram was at home with his mother, Shobha Devi. According to Shobha, her brother, Rajesh Kumar, arrived at the house and handed the child a pistol after telling him he had brought him a toy.
Shobha said her son had asked his uncle for a Dairy Milk chocolate before Rajesh allegedly handed him the firearm. The pistol went off while the child was playing with it, hitting him in the forehead.
The family rushed Sahil to Bokaro General Hospital. He was subsequently shifted to Muskan Hospital in Chas as his condition was critical, but doctors could not save him.
Rajesh allegedly fled from the hospital after the child was declared dead and remains absconding. Police have seized the pistol and launched an investigation.
“I had no idea that the pistol was real, as I had never seen an original one. Otherwise, I would not have let the child touch it,” Shobha said.
Sanjay Kumar, officer-in-charge of Marafari police station, said the police received information that a child had been shot in the head with a pistol allegedly given to him by his maternal uncle.
“We rushed to the spot, recovered the firearm and started an investigation. The main accused has been absconding,” he said, adding that further details would emerge as the investigation progressed.
