Bhubaneswar: Firing during rush for filling petrol leaves youth injured

Bhubaneswar: A youth sustained critical injuries in a firing at a petrol station near Jharpada overbridge in Odisha capital, last night.

The victim, identified as Biswajit Behera, a resident of Nayapalli in the city, was admitted to the Capital Hospital here for treatment.

According to reports, petrol stations in Bhubaneswar witnessed severe rush and lengthy queues last night with people filling up fuel tanks of their vehicles, hours before the two-day Bharat Bandh observance. The situation was same at the petrol station near Jharpada overbridge.

At around 11 pm, several persons arrived at the petrol station in an SUV. They defied the queue system and asked the staff to fill up the tank of their vehicle.

As the employees refused to do so, a heated exchange of words erupted between the persons and the staff. The occupants of the vehicle then called some of their associates, who reached the spot on two motorcycles and threatened the employees of the petrol station.

Though the staff filled up the tank of the vehicle in a bid to avoid any untoward incident, the matter was far from getting pacified. The miscreants took out a gun from the SUV and opened fire at the staff.

However, the bullet missed the target and hit the left leg of Biswajit Behera, leaving him grievously injured. The attackers fled the spot after the incident.

On being informed, police reached the place and started an investigation. Efforts were on by cops to identify and nab the accused.