Bullet injures carpenter at Manikonda, Army blamed
Police suspect that the bullet was fired by the Army while firing practice was going on
Hyderabad:In a strange incident, a carpenter was injured by a bullet fired by unidentified people from an unknown location.
Cyberabad police, who recovered the bullet, suspect that it was fired from an INSAS rifle, used by the Army.
The victim, Srinivas Chari, 40, was driving his bike at Manikonda when the bullet hit his hand. However, he did not hear any gunshot.
After a preliminary examination, the police suspect that the bullet was fired by the Army from either the Narsingi area or the Golconda area, where firing practice was going on.
“There are two possibilities we are looking at in this case. First, the bullet must have come from the Golconda Artillery Centre or the Narsingi Army land where firing practice was going on in the morning. One of the shooters must have missed the target and the bullet must have travelled several hundred metres and hit the victim. Second, as part of firing practice, Army officials must have fired from higher ground like hillocks, and the bullet must have travelled till this area and hit the victim,” said Madhapur ACP S. Sreedhar.
The victim, Chari, suffered a minor injury on his hand above the wrist. Since the bullet travelled more than a kilometre, it did not pierce his body, police officials said.
The ACP said the bullet is used only by the Army. “That bullet is not used in any licensed weapons of citizens. The police also do not use this bullet in their weapons. Only the Army use it in their weapons,” he said.
The Raidurgam police has booked a case and is investigating the matter.
“We have sent the bullet to the forensic laboratory for verification. We are inquiring with Army officials too,” said Raidurgam inspector Srikanth.
He said the victim had no enemies and did not face a threat to his life from anybody.
In a similar incident, three days ago, a woman working in her farm was hit by a stray bullet fired by CISF personnel who were engaged in firing practice at their firing range near Chakriyal village in the Pulkal mandal of Medak district on Thursday. The bullet missed the target, and travelled more than two kilometers and hit the victim’s head.