Cool Ahmedabad

A bustling part of the city off Ring Road witnessed a shootout around 11 am on Friday. Vitthal Bharwad, brother of ex-MLA Bhavan Bharwad from Dholka, was shot at from close range by a man later identified as Naresh Soni. Both got bullet wounds but were said to be out of danger.

Bharwad told the police that he was sitting with friends at a tea stall off Ring Road near Shreenath crossroads at Naranpura when Soni, armed with guns in both hands, came on a motorbike and opened fire at him. "One of the bullets hit him on his upper arm breaking a bone," said a Naranpura police station official. Later, Soni tried to escape but fell down and was beaten up by passers-by.

The biker who brought him escaped. Soni was rushed to VS Hospital where doctors took out a bullet from his abdomen, which indicated that Bharwad may have opened fire too.

"We have found two firearms from the spot. One is a good quality country-made revolver and another a country-made single-shot gun popularly known as 'katta'. However, we have not found any bullet from the spot. Bharwad has no bullets in his body, it may have fallen on way to hospital," said the official.

The police are not buying Bharwad's version and believes it to be a clear case of cross-fire. "Forensic science experts found a revolver a few feet away. Chamber of the weapon was pulled out and pin was broken. The chamber had a fired shot only. Now we have to ascertain ownership of the gun and reconstruct the scene of crime," said a senior city police official.

Officials are also probing a possibility of one assailant grabbing both guns to shoot. Bharwad, 34, owns a finance and land dealing firm in Vyaswadi area. Officials have booked Soni for attempt to murder and are probing the motive.