Bhatinda firing: Jawan confesses to killing four of his colleagues

The soldier involved in the shooting at the Bhatinda Military Camp in which four persons were killed has been detained by the security forces.

On Wednesday, four jawans who were sleeping near the officers' mess in the military camp were shot dead at around 4.35 am. 19 empty INSAS shells were found at the site.

The police had ruled out any terror angle in the case. The arrested jawan has been identified as Desai Mohan. The motive was personnel and he had enmity with the people he killed the police said.

According to an Army statement, the arrested jawan had confessed to his involvement in stealing the INSAS rifle and killing four of his colleagues. The initial assessment suggests that the jawan had gone about the killing due to personal reasons or animosity.

"As per his confession, on the early morning of 09 April 2023, he stole the weapon along with a filled magazine. He then hid the weapon. On 12 April 2023 at around 0430 hours, while he was on sentry duty, he recovered the weapon from its hiding place, moved to the first floor, and killed all four personnel while they were asleep," the statement also read.

"The individual then proceeded to throw the weapon into the sewage pit. The weapon and additional ammunition have been recovered from the sewage pit. The statement made by the individual while filing the initial FIR on 12 April, mentioning two persons in civil dress with INSAS rifle and an axe was an attempt to divert the attention of investigating agencies," the Army also said.

According to the Punjab Police, four jawans had been interrogated in connection with the case. The police had also registered a case against four unknown person and the FIR was registered on the basis of a statement by Major Ashutosh Shukla. The FIR said that the four slain jawans have been identified as Sagar, Kamlesh, Santosh and Yogesh.

"It has been ascertained that in the unfortunate incident, four army jawans of an artillery unit succumbed to gunshot injuries sustained during the incident. No other injuries to personnel or loss/damage to property have been reported," the Army had said in a statement.

The Army also said that all aspects including a possible case of involvement of an INSAS rifle along with 28 rounds reported missing days before the incident were being ascertained.

"Four army jawans of an artillery unit succumbed to gunshot injuries sustained during the firing incident at Bathinda Military Station. No other injuries to personnel or loss/damage to property reported. The area continues to be sealed off and joint investigations with Punjab Police are being coordinated to establish the facts of the case. All aspects including the possible case of involvement of an INSAS rifle along with 28 rounds reported missing two days back are being ascertained," the Army statement also read.