BHUBANESWAR: Bhubaneswar witnessed a new low in law and order after bullets rained during a fight between two groups in front of a crowded wedding venue at Jharapada on Wednesday night, raising two serious questions - safety of the citizens as well as the state of policing in the capital city.
Going by a preliminary investigation, at least nine rounds were fired during the fight that turned violent. One of the groups involved in the incident was related to Ward-32 corporator and BJD leader Sridhar Jena. The other belonged to BJP’s Pravat Martha who had unsuccessfully contested from the same ward during the civic polls last year.
Police said Sridhar’s nephew Alok and Pravat had a heated exchange over the passage of their respective cars. When Alok’s father Sikhar Jena came to know about it, he rushed to the spot. As the confrontation turned violent, Dibakar Kalasa, a private security of Pravat, reportedly shot at Sikhar and Alok. The father-son duo was hit on their legs and rushed to Capital Hospital.
However, Pravat’s family members alleged Alok and his associates fired at his car near Prajapati Bibaha Mandap and their claims are being verified by the police. A PCR van and team from Laxmi Sagar police station reached the spot to control the confrontation. The local police station is barely a kilometre from the spot.
The police seized two guns, eight rounds of live ammunition and nine empty cartridges from the spot. Of the two, one firearm belongs to Dibakar and police confirmed it to be licensed. The other weapon’s owner is yet to be identified.
The investigation suggested out of the recovered cartridges, six were discharged from Dibakar’s gun. However, the remaining three are yet to be linked which indicated that even a third gun could have been used on the spot. The incident has brought to fore use of unlicensed and illegal firearms which is easily available in the city with very little crackdown by the Commissionerate Police. Meanwhile, police registered two cases based on complaints of the two sides and arrested Dibakar and Raja Sahoo. Bhubaneswar DCP Prateek Singh said police will strengthen the drive against illegal firearms.