Three of Kasganj family shot over ‘family feud’, 7 arrested

Police identified the dead as Bhupendra Singh, Prem Singh and Radhacharan, all relatives of ex-pradhan Rajpal Singh, a resident of Hodalpur.

It is alleged that Rajpal Singh had a feud with Rustam Singh’s family for several years and a scuffle last year triggered further tension.

“We received information that a firing has taken place in Hodalpur area. As the police responded, it was found that there was a scuffle between Rajpal and Rustam Singh. Both sides resorted to firing that resulted in the death of three persons from Rajpal’s side. One other injured person was referred to Aligarh for further treatment. Seven people have been arrested and a probe is on,” said Kasganj SP Sushil Ghule.

On Sunday evening, members of both families initially had a verbal argument that soon escalated to a gun fight from both sides.

According to local residents, at least 30 rounds were fired between both parties and several in the area had to flee to avoid being caught in crossfire. Some of theaccused fled and a search was on for them, police said.

Police personnel of several stations have been deployed in the village. The police have recovered three country-made pistols and suspect that the weapons used by both sides were illegal.