A 22-year-old man died Friday night when an unlicensed pistol went off while he was posing with it for a selfie during a marriage function in Sahibganj district.

Sunil Topna, officer-in-charge, Sahibganj town police station, said the deceased, Pawan Kumar Paswan, a resident of Mirza Gaon village in Bhagalpur district of Bihar, had come to the marriage function at his maternal uncle’s house.

Pawan, along with his two friends, Arjun Paswan and Ajay Paswan, was dancing near the podium. The three were passing the locally made gun among themselves while also flashing the gun to the people. They were also pointing the gun at their heads and posing for selfies, the officer said.

Meanwhile, Pawan took the gun and stood on the dais. With the bride and bridegroom in the background, he tried to take a selfie while pointing the gun to his head. Suddenly, a gunshot sound rang out and he collapsed on the stage. People rushed Pawan to a local hospital, where doctors pronounced him brought dead. “Though it appears that the deceased accidentally shot himself, we are investigating the case from all angles, including murder. Both his friends are being questioned. A case under the relevant provisions of Arms Act along with Section 302 (punishment for murder) of the IPC has been registered against the duo,” the officer said.

The state has seen a spate of incidents where people, especially teenagers and youth, have died in accidents while taking selfies. Last week, at Hazaribag railway station, a youth suffered over 50% burn injuries while clicking a selfie atop a train. In November 2018, a herd of elephants crushed a man to death while he was taking selfies with the jumbos.

First Published: Jun 16, 2019 04:21 IST