Fight, Gunshots, Panic: Punjab Tourist Injures Local In Kasol Firing

The sounds of gunshots disrupted regular chatter by locals and tourists in Himachal Pradesh's Kasol as a Punjab man opened fire, injuring a local.

The incident was reported on Saturday from the hamlet in Kullu district, which is seeing peak tourist traffic as the plains in nearby states witness record temperatures. At around 6 pm, an argument erupted between the two groups over an unspecified issue at the popular Green Valley hotel. The argument quickly escalated into a physical fight, during which gunshots were allegedly fired.

The bullet hit a local in the leg, causing him to collapse in pain. Visuals showed the local exiting from the hotel's parking as the tourists followed him. He is then carried on the back by another local to safety.

As he was being rushed to the hospital for treatment, the angry tourist followed him, loading his gun again to fire more shots, but was stopped by those accompanying him.

Police rushed to the spot and detained four tourists from Punjab, who are now being interrogated. They have been identified as Manpreet Singh (29), a resident of Tarn Taran; Aman Randhawa (22), a resident of Amritsar; Sukhmandeep Singh (17), a resident of Ferozepur; and Karndeep Singh (22), a resident of Gurdaspur. Another individual involved in the incident, Taman, a resident of Gurdaspur, is currently on the run and a search is underway to find him.

A First Information Report (FIR) is being registered under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Arms Act. Police are also conducting searches to recover the weapon and attmepting to ascertain the motive behind the incident.

The incident caused panic in the town that has been brimming with tourists since many years and is infamous for the use of drugs and clashes between locals and visitors.

With inputs from Shashibhushan Purohit