‘Original bhai’, friend held for firing countrymade gun in Diva

Accused wanted to establish himself as gangster with murder

As if enforcing the lockdown and bandobast for Eid celebrations were not enough, the Mumbra police on Sunday night had to contend with a wannabe gangster who fired three rounds at a Diva resident to prove that he was an “original bhai” and not just a “Facebook ka bhai (a Facebook gangster)”.

The man and his friend were arrested within six hours of the offence being committed.

According to the Mumbra police, the incident occurred around 9 p.m. on Sunday at Agasan Gaon, where the complainant, Dinesh Munde, stays with his family. The accused, Akshay Patil (24), and his friend Arun Bhatia (20) are known to Mr. Munde and called him near a cremation ground to have a drink with them.

“As soon as Mr. Munde reached the spot, Mr. Patil aimed a countrymade pistol at Mr. Munde, saying he had come to prove he was more than just a ‘Facebook ka bhai’ and that he would establish himself as an ‘original bhai’ by killing Mr Munde. The latter lunged at Mr. Patil’s hand and dodged the bullet. Mr. Bhatia rushed to help Mr. Patil and in the ensuing scuffle, two more rounds were fired,” a police officer said.

Residents disturbed

The officer said the gunfire woke up residents of the area, who started coming out of their houses. Worried that someone would call the police, Mr. Patil and Mr. Bhatia fled the scene. Hours later, while Mr. Munde was on his way to the police station, he received a call from Mr. Patil saying he was going to finish the job soon.

While the police were checking CCTV camera footage after getting calls from eyewitnesses, an FIR was registered after Mr. Munde reported the matter to them.

“We recorded Mr. Munde’s statement and sent teams to Diva. Working with local informants, we picked up both the accused. Inquiries indicate Mr. Patil had demanded extortion money from Mr. Munde, who did not take him seriously. The insult rankled and led to Sunday's incident. We are finding out where Mr. Patil got the gun from,” the officer said. The two have been charged with attempt to murder and criminal intimidation under the Indian Penal Code, and sections of the Arms Act.