Panic at late night as gun goes off outside Prime Minister's residence

NEW DELHI: There was panic late on Wednesday night after firing was reported from near the Prime Minister's 7 Race Course Road residence. It turned out be a case of accidental firing from a PCR jeep stationed there. Senior officials in the security apparatus said that the police weapon went off accidentally at the time of change of duty of the PCR.

"It is a standard operating procedure that when a PCR gets off duty, the police officials hand over the weapons to the one that replaces it. One of the guns went off at that time," explained a senior police official. Sources claimed that there would be inquiry and action against the erring cop. "They cannot be so careless at a time when there is heightened security threat, and that too near the PM's residence," the official added.
The shots were fired "accidentally" by a Delhi Police constable outside the Prime Minister's residence.

A constable posted with the PCR wing "accidentally" fired three rounds while loading his AK-47 rifle during change of duty at the media parking lot. opposite the prime minister's residence in the posh Lutyens bungalow area in Central Delhi, DCP (New Delhi) Jatin Narwal told PTI.

"He accidentally fired three rounds while loading his AK-47 rifle," DCP (New Delhi) Jatin Narwal said, adding that nobody was injured in the incident.

An inquiry has been ordered into the episode which occurred at around 8:15 PM. No FIR has been registered so far, he said.

Security officials in and around the prime minister's residence rushed to the spot hearing the sound of gunfire. They later reported the matter at Chanakyapuri police station.

The media parking lot has round-the-clock deployment of a Police Control Room team for security reasons.