Constable on duty in Gadchiroli district court killed in accidental gun discharge

Gadchiroli: A police constable on duty in the district court in Maharashtra's Gadchiroli died after his automatic service gun accidentally discharged eight bullets and three of them hit him on Wednesday afternoon, an official said.

The constable, Umaji Holi, was on duty as part of the escort of Gadchiroli's district judge, police said.

At around 2:55 pm, Holi was sitting in a car in the court premises when his automatic weapon accidentally went off. Three of the eight bullets from the gun hit him in the chest, stomach and shoulder, leaving him seriously injured, said the police.

He was immediately rushed to the District General Hospital, where medical authorities declared him brought dead, they said.

A senior police official told PTI that prima facie it was a case of accidental gun discharge.

A case of accidental death was registered and all assistance is being given to the constable's family, he added.

Superintendent of Police Nilotpal and other senior officials visited the incident site and the hospital to gather information about the episode.