Guwahati: The Assam Police on Tuesday formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the firing incident at a hotel here a day ago that claimed five lives and left one injured.
The SIT will be headed by Ankur Jain, Joint Commissioner of Police, Guwahati. Its members include Shambhavi Mishra, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central), Guwahati; Dr Debajit Nath, APS, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime), Guwahati; Viku Achumi, Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central), Guwahati; Inspector Kuleshjyoti Bhuyan, the officer-in-charge of Paltan Bazar police station, and Sub-Inspector Abinash Das of the same police precinct.
The statement said the SIT has been constituted "in view of the gravity of the incident" and to ensure a thorough, scientific and expeditious investigation.
Five people, including four of a family, were killed and another was injured in a shooting incident at Hotel Bilas Inn in the Bora Service area of Guwahati on Monday night over a dispute between the owners of the property and its leaseholder.
The leaseholder, Ghanakanta Gogoi (34), was arrested soon after the incident with a licensed pistol allegedly used in the crime, police said.
Sharing details of the incident, the statement said the Paltan Bazar police station received information about multiple gunshots at the hotel around 9 pm on Monday.
The injured were shifted to Gauhati Medical College and Hospital (GMCH), where one of them succumbed to injuries.
The deceased have been identified as Bhudeb Bharali, his sister Helena, her son and daughter-in-law, Debarshi and Rinki, and family staffer, Narayan Das. A driver of the Bharali family, Satyen Pathak, was also injured in the shooting.
According to preliminary findings of the investigation, the incident stemmed from a dispute concerning the lease and management of Hotel Bilas Inn.
Police said the hotel owners had entered into a five-year lease agreement with the accused on 10 September 2025, at a monthly rent of approximately Rs 1.8 lakh.
Following renovation of the property by the accused, disagreements reportedly arose over the use of the premises and the provision of certain facilities.
A meeting had been scheduled at the hotel on October 26 to resolve the issues. However, according to the preliminary investigation, an argument escalated into a physical altercation before the meeting could formally begin, following which the accused allegedly opened fire on six people.
The police secured the scene of the incident and deployed teams from the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) for scientific examination and evidence collection.
Several empty cartridge cases and live cartridges of .32 calibre were recovered and seized from the scene, the police said.
The accused is currently being interrogated by the investigating officer as part of the ongoing probe.
(With inputs from PTI & ANI)