MP man shoots dead 2 persons after argument over pet dogs

A man and his brother-in-law were killed and six others, including a pregnant woman, were injured when a person who works as a bank security guard opened fire on them from his double-barrel gun after an altercation over pet dogs in Indore city of Madhya Pradesh, the police said on Friday.

The incident occurred late Thursday night, after which the accused security guard, his son and nephew were arrested, a police official said.

"Rajpal Singh Rajawat posted as a security guard at a local branch of Bank of Baroda, opened fire with his licensed gun in a colony located under Khajrana police station limits following an argument over pet dogs," additional deputy commissioner of police Amrendra Singh said.

Rahul Verma (28) and his brother-in-law Vimal Amcha (35) were killed on the spot in the firing, while six others who were injured in the incident are undergoing treatment at a hospital, he said.

"The incident occurred after Rajawat took his pet dog out for a walk in Krishnabagh Colony. His dog started barking at the neighbour's pet dog. This triggered an argument between Rajawat and Amcha's family members," Singh said.

Their argument escalated to such a level that Rajawat went to his house, took out his gun and fired two rounds in the air from the terrace. After that, he opened fire on the people standing on the road below, the official said.

After the incident, the police arrested Rajawat (45), his son Sudhir (19) and nephew Shubham (28), Khajrana police station officer-in-charge Umrao Singh said.

A double-barrel 12-bore gun, its licence, cartridge cases and some live bullets were recovered from the accused security guard, he said.

"The security guard fired at least three rounds from this gun. We are scanning the footage captured in the CCTV cameras installed around the spot," the official said.

All the six injured are out of danger after treatment, he said.

Jyoti, the pregnant wife of deceased Rahul Verma, is among the injured persons. She suffered a pellet injury in her eye, the station house officer said.

The double murder incident has left residents of the lane in the densely-populated Krishnabagh Colony area in a state of shock. The sudden turn of events that claimed the lives of two locals has left them shaken.

The deceased, Amcha, used to run a hair cutting salon in the city, he said.

Pallavi Borse, who lives opposite Amcha's house, told PTI, "Two pet dogs from our lane, including the one owned by Rajawat, started fighting with each other. During the fight, when they started entering Amcha's house, his brother Pramod chased Rajawat's dog away with a stick. Soon a heated argument broke out between the two parties over it."

The woman, who witnessed the incident, said her husband, who had been suffering from paralysis for the past five years, also suffered pellet injuries in the firing.