‘Cop who shot himself is critical,but stable’

“He is speaking and responding. Surgeons will decide in a day or two on further surgery. He is critical but stable,” said Quaiser Khalid,additional commissioner of police (east region).

“The bullet exited cleanly,but has left fractures in face bones and skull,while also damaging his tongue and the brain’s frontal lobe. He is stable now. He has been sedated. We hope he does not contract cerebral infection,” said Dr Prince Surana,director,Surana Sethia Hospital.

The 42-year-old policeman, posted at Chunabhatti police station for a year now,allegedly shot himself at 3.10 pm Wednesday,minutes after entering the police station. Police said he had eaten with colleagues and retreated into his cabin. A gunshot was heard minutes later,and colleagues found him bleeding from the head.

Khalid said assistant commissioner of police (Chembur division) Milind Bhise would probe for possible reasons that may have led Mahajan to take the extreme step.

Seniors officers,however,said Mahajan was embroiled in a corruption case and was reprimanded by a senior officer Wednesday morning. “The charges against Mahajan are serious,” said an officer,while refusing to elaborate.

Mahajan’s mother arrived in Mumbai late Wednesday night while his wife was hospitalised in Nashik after she was informed about the incident.

Mahajan’s wife and two children were not at their home in Nehru Nagar,Kurla,at the time of the incident. Police later traced them to Karwan near Nashik. “The couple has two young sons who study in a school in Shivaji Park. After the school finished for the day on Wednesday,they returned home by 12.45 pm. Mahajan’s wife took them along with her,locked the door and left the key with a neighbour. The neighbour told us Mahajan also came home at 1.15 pm and on finding the door locked,he asked her where his wife was. The neighbour told us Mahajan then spent half-an-hour inside his house and left the key with her after locking the door. He must have headed to Chunabhatti police station then,” the officer said.

By 4.30 pm on Wednesday,the police had informed Mahajan’s mother and in-laws,but could not reach his wife as her cellphone was switched off. “Mahajan’s wife fainted after her parents informed her of the shooting. She has been hospitalised. We will question her once she is discharged,” said Khalid.

srinath.rao@expressindia.com