Guwahati hotel shooting: Lease dispute led to firing that killed at least five

NEW DELHI: Five people were killed and one injured after a shooting at Hotel Bilas Inn in Guwahati’s Bora Service area around 9pm on Monday, with police suspecting that a property dispute over the hotel’s lease agreement triggered the attack.Guwahati Police Commissioner Partha Sarathi Mahanta said the accused, identified as Ghanakanta Gogoi, was apprehended within an hour of the incident. The weapon used in the shooting was seized, and interrogation was underway.“Based on the preliminary investigation, we suspect that the incident stemmed from a property dispute related to the lease agreement of Hotel Bilas Inn,” Mahanta said, adding that the investigation was still at an early stage.According to the police commissioner, four of the five people killed belonged to the same family, while the fifth victim was from their village. The injured person was also from the same village and was undergoing treatment.Police said the accused had taken the hotel on lease and that the incident appeared to have arisen from a dispute between the hotel owner’s side and the leaseholder.Mahanta described the incident as an unfortunate firing and said a scientific and thorough investigation was underway to establish the sequence of events and bring the case to its logical conclusion.Get the latest India News and Live updates. Download the TOI app.