Shootout over land dispute between two groups in Bardhaman, several injured

Tension explodes into violence in Bardhaman City's Golahat area (Burdwan Muncipality Ward 18) when two local groups clashes over land dispute, leaving several people injured and one bullet fired in the air. The fight quickly turned intense with sticks, rods and even a licensed gun which came later in the scene. Scared residents locked their doors as shouting and the sound of gunfire echoed through the lanes. Several injured persons, including the maternal uncle of local Trinamool councillor Pradeep Rahman, were rushed to Burdwan Medical College Hospital for treatment.

The trouble has been brewing for almost a month. Local businessman Sabir Ali wants to fill up a pond inside his house compound to build more rooms, but TMC councillor Pradeep Rahman and his supporters claim the pond belongs to the community and cannot be filled. Both sides have been holding meetings for weeks related to this matter. As per reports, when the TMC workers were returning their houses after a meeting at the local party office, Councillor Pradeep’s supporters alleges that they were suddenly attacked by businessman Sabir Ali’s group led by his son and daughter

On the other hand, Sabir’s daughter Shabnam Shahir says around 100-150 people from the TMC councillor’s side tried to storm their house and break their house gate. In panic, their licensed security guard fired one round in the air to scare the crowd away. Burdwan police station officers reached the spot quickly, controlled the situation and arrested two persons for questioning. Both groups have filed complaints against each other. Bardhaman Dakshin TMC MLA Khokan Das visited the hospital and met the injured. People living nearby are terrified and want this land dispute get settled peacefully before someone gets killed in the next round of fighting.