Minor’s selfie love shoots cousin

In a freak accident, a 17-year-old boy accidentally pulled the trigger of a loaded pistol while taking selfie, killing his 23-year-old cousin in Southeast Delhi’s Sarita Vihar area on Thursday evening.

According to police, the deceased has been identified as Prashant Chauhan, 23, who was working as a teacher in a Government school on contractual basis.

A native of Baghpat in Uttar Pradesh, Prashant recently shifted to Delhi and started living in Shahdara after he got the job, said police, adding that as his maternal uncle lived in Sarita Vihar, the deceased often used to visit him.

“We received information on Thursday from Apollo Hospital regarding a boy sustaining a gunshot injury,” said Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP), Southeast district Chinmoy Biswal.

“On further enquiry, the pistol belonged to the minor’s father, Pramod Chauhan, a property dealer, who was out at work at the time of the incident,” said Biswal.

Police said on hearing the gunshot, family members rushed and found Prashant lying in a pool of blood. They immediately took Prashant to Apollo where he was declared brought dead. The bullet pierced through his chest. The DCP said, “We have registered a case under relevant Sections of the IPC and Arms Act.”

“We have apprehended the minor boy on Friday. We will also investigate the negligence on the part of the father and have seized the pistol, the lead and the empty shell,” added Biswal.

“On the fateful day, Prashant had to attend a distant relative’s wedding and came to his uncle’s house,” said a relative of Prashant.

In 2017, there have been several instances where people were killed while taking selfies on the railway tracks. In October last year, a teenager last seen taking a selfie on railway tracks died after being run over by a train near the Welcome railway station in Northeast Delhi. Police suspect he was walking along the tracks with earphones on and did not hear the train coming.

The victim, Arbaz, 18, studied at a Government school in the neighbourhood and had left home for tuition classes. His body was found next to the tracks on next day. Cops found a pair of earphones next to the body. They suspect his mobile phone was stolen after the accident. GRP personnel said Arbaz was earlier seen stopping on the tracks to take a selfie.

In 2016 in Ludhiana, a 15-year-old boy was killed while he accidentally pulled the trigger of his father’s revolver. The bullet stuck in the head of the minor boy who later succumbed to injuries.