Baleswar Bus Association secretary and transporter Kartik Pradhan (40) received bullet injuries at around 11 pm on Friday night while he was returning to his Remuna residence on a bike.
The miscreants, who followed him on a bike, shot at him from point-blank range before fleeing the spot. The bullets fired in several rounds hit Pradhan’s right thigh. Injured Pradhan fell from the bike while the people nearby rushed him to
the District Headquarters Hospital. However, subsequently his family members who reached there on being informed shifted him to a private hospital in Bhubaneswar. Pradhan is also a member of a major transporting union of district. As of now, the police were not able to know the exact cause behind the firing on Pradhan, nor could they nab the culprits. It is suspected that Pradhan might have been targeted by his rivals in the transport business.
SP Awinash Kumar said, “Immediately after the incident, we blocked all the major roads near Remuna so that the culprits do not escape. However, none was nabbed so far. A case has been registered under Section 307 of IPC and 25 and 27 of Arms Act and an investigation is on.” Meanwhile, a buzz was doing the round that the firing could be extortion-related.