BJP leader Vijay Soni on Thursday said he had a narrow escape when bike-borne armed attackers opened fire while he was at his petrol pump in Punjab’s Gurdaspur.
According to Soni, convener of BJP’s district trade cell in Gurdaspur, he escaped unhurt in the incident. Police said they were investigating the matter.
On Wednesday evening, two men arrived on a bike at Soni’s petrol pump in Gurdaspur with their faces covered and opened fire, he said on Thursday.
Soni further said he had a narrow escape in the incident. Two to three bullets hit his car nearby while one struck the wall, he said.
As soon as the assailants opened fire, he immediately took out his licensed gun from the bag nearby and fired retaliatory shots, after which the accused fled the spot.
The petrol pump’s CCTV captured the incident.
Soni said that before the firing incident, he had received an audio message from a foreign number demanding a ransom of Rs 2 crore and giving him 10 days to pay up.
Soni said that he also runs a spare part shop and keeps a licensed weapon with him as his business involves cash dealings.
After the incident, Punjab BJP chief Kewal Singh Dhillon spoke to the senior superintendent of police in Gurdaspur, demanding a thorough investigation and immediate arrest of the accused.
Dhillon also spoke to Soni over the phone.
Later, he said that the firing incident at the petrol pump of Vijay Soni in Gurdaspur, for the purpose of seeking extortion, is highly condemnable and slammed the Bhagwant Mann government over the deteriorating law and order situation in the state.
Union Minister of State Ravneet Singh Bittu also spoke to Soni after the incident, Soni said.
