By IANS,
Agra : Armed men opened fire in a jeweller’s shop in Agra’s Shah Ganj area, killing one person and injuring two others, police said Monday.
Shail Kundra, a shopkeeper, and Ramesh Lavani were sitting in a jeweller’s shop Sunday evening when two armed men barged in. Before Kundra could pull out his pistol, the assailants fired three bullets into him. They also fired three shots at Lavani, police said.
The gunmen escaped firing in the air. In the process, a roadside hawker Amit was hurt. Shop owners immediately pulled down shutters and the whole market was closed in a jiffy, police told the media.
Eye witnesses said power supply to the market had been suspended for five minutes to enable the assailants carry out their mission. Deputy Inspector General Aditya Mishra has ordered an investigation of those in charge of the power supply feeder in Shah Ganj.
All the three shooting victims were taken to the emergency ward of the S.N. Medical College. While Kundra succumbed to his injuries Sunday night, the other two are out of danger now, police said.
Meanwhile, shopkeepers in the Shah Ganj area kept their shops closed Monday to protest Kundra’s killing.
Police sources said the shootout was the result of a feud between two families. Around 15 months ago a shop owner named Ram Kishan Malhotra was shot dead. Police had then registered a case against Kundra and eight others. Shopkeepers said the dispute began over the possession of a commercial establishment in the Rui Ki Mandi area.
Police officials said the arms licences of both groups had been “cancelled long ago”. They suspect the arms used in the shootout Sunday were unlicensed.