Police practise inside firing range,bullets cause damage outside

“The incident took place around 10.30 am at the Alpha and Omega commercial buildings in Hiranandani Gardens in Powai. A group of policemen was practising at the range when two stray bullets hit a parked car and a fire hose box and shattered the glass. Cases of misfiring have been reported in the past but the chances of someone being seriously injured are rare,” said senior police inspector Ashok Jadhav of the Powai police station. He added that the bullets were probably fired from an SLR or a 303 rifle. A tall wall is being built around the range,he said.

The car hit belonged to the director of Energy Solutions at International Copper Association. “I rushed downstairs and found that the glass was shattered completely. I found a bullet inside my car and immediately informed the facility supervisor who in turn notified the police,” he said.

Additional Commissioner of Police Sandeep Bishnoi,Local Arms Division,said a detailed inquiry would be conducted into the incident.

Hiranandani Gardens Commando Operations Manager Prakash Wadkar alleged that at least five such incidents had taken place in Powai in the last two years.

“In the previous cases,a domestic help was allegedly hit by a bullet on her leg,then another bullet fell outside a hotel. In 2008,a bullet hit the window of a flat in Saraswati Building,and in the same year in December,a stray bullet landed inside a house in Tirandaz village in old Powai. We have brought this to the notice of the police several times but they refused to admit that the bullets were misfired from the police firing range,” said Wadkar.

Joint Commissioner of Police (Law and Order) Himanshu Roy said that they have sought details of the firing range.