Teen injured as bullet goes off while four youngsters play with firearm in Mundhwa

Pune: A 17-year-old boy sustained a stomach injury after a bullet accidentally went off while he and four other youngsters were allegedly playing with a country-made firearm at an open ground in Mundhwa on Wednesday night. The injured boy, a resident of the same locality, lodged a complaint with the police on Saturday night.Senior inspector Smita Wasnik of Mundhwa police station told TOI, "All four youngsters booked in the case have criminal antecedents, with cases of offences against the body registered against them."Police have arrested three of the youngsters – a 21-year-old and two 19-year-olds. The fourth, a minor, has been detained."The complainant stated that the four others had found the pistol at the open ground and were playing with it. However, we suspect this may be a fabricated story and are investigating this angle," Wasnik said. The injured teenager was admitted to Sassoon General Hospital, where doctors reported his condition as stable. The police have registered a case of rash and negligent act endangering human life and personal safety."The three arrested men and the detained minor initially took the injured boy to a nearby private hospital for treatment. However, he was referred to Sassoon General Hospital," Wasnik added. "All four are unemployed. They are school dropouts and often roam around the city on motorcycles, while their parents are daily wage workers," she added.On being asked about the delay in registering the complaint, Wasnik said, "The private hospital as well as Sassoon General Hospital did not send the medico-legal case report to the police station. The spot of the incident is isolated and rarely visited. We will probe why neither hospital informed us earlier, as it could have helped us learn about the incident much sooner."