A Manipuri woman married to an Assamese man was among five people shot dead at Hotel Bilas Inn in Guwahati’s Bora Service area on Monday following a dispute between the hotel owner and its leaseholder.
The victims were identified as Helena Bharali, the hotel owner; her son, Devarshi Kashyap; his wife, Riniki Kashyap, the Manipuri woman; Narayan Das, a family relative; and Bhudev Bharali, Helena’s brother.
One other person, Satyendra Pathak, sustained critical gunshot injuries and is undergoing treatment at Guwahati Medical College.
Police arrested the accused, Ghanakanta Gogoi, who had taken the hotel on lease. Guwahati Police Commissioner Partha Sarathi Mahanta said preliminary investigation pointed to a dispute over the hotel’s lease agreement as the motive for the shooting.
According to the police, the leaseholder allegedly opened fire on the victims, all of whom were associated with the hotel owner. A licensed .32-bore pistol suspected to have been used in the attack has been seized.