Cop shoots woman dead before killing himself in Kolkata

A police constable posted at the Bangladesh Deputy High Commission in Kolkata fired multiple rounds before shooting himself dead on Friday, according to reports in the Indian media.

The incident took place in central Kolkata’s busy Park Circus area on Friday, police said.

The on-duty policeman reportedly fired several rounds into the air and the crowd outside the high commission building, and fatally shot a woman present at the scene, broadcaster NDTV reports. After killing the woman, the policeman shot himself in the head, authorities said.

The woman, who was riding pillion on a two-wheeler, fell down after being hit by a bullet as the on-duty policeman kept firing from his rifle, triggering chaos in the congested area, they said, according to news agency PTI.

The woman died on the spot while the policeman, after firing a few more rounds, shot himself in the head, according to the authorities.

The constable has been identified as C Lepcha but the identity of the woman is yet to be known.

Lepcha had been on leave and had joined duty on Friday, police sources have said.

The constable fired from his service weapon, a self-loading rifle or SLR.

“The whole incident lasted for around five minutes,” Bablu Sheikh, a witness to the shooting, told news agency PTI.

Senior police officers arrived at the scene immediately after the incident.

“We have heard that the incident occurred on the road adjacent to the one at the back of the high commission building. The commission has no connection to the incident,” said Ranjan Sen, first secretary (Press) at Bangladesh Deputy High Commission in Kolkata.