Man opens fire at son over property dispute

A 60-year-old man, identified as Suresh, allegedly opened fire at his son during a drunken brawl at their house in Maralenahalli on the northeastern outskirts of Bengaluru on Thursday, police said.

Suresh’s son, Harish, 28, sustained head injuries and has been admitted to a hospital in Bengaluru. The Doddaballapur Rural Police have detained Suresh for questioning.

The incident occurred around 11 p.m. on Thursday following a brief fight between the father and son over property issues, which, according to police, have been recurring for the past five years. Harish’s mother died a few years ago and since then, the father and son have been living together. Harish works in a private company.

Preliminary investigations revealed that both Harish and Suresh were drunk when they began arguing over property distribution. In the ensuing scuffle, they assaulted each other, and the situation quickly escalated. In a fit of rage, Suresh allegedly pulled out a licensed gun and opened fire at Harish.

“Neighbours and other villagers shifted Harish to a nearby hospital, and he was later taken to Bengaluru. He is currently under medical observation,” a police officer overseeing the investigation told The Hindu.

According to the police, Harish had been asking his father for his share of the inheritance for several years, but Suresh had been delaying the process, fearing that Harish would sell the property to fund his drinking habit. Since then, they had been quarrelling over property rights, but the dispute escalated violently on Thursday night.

When asked about the firearm, police said that Suresh had obtained a gun licence in 1986 citing security concerns due to his large property holdings. The weapon has been seized, and further investigation is under way.