Bike-Borne Assailants Shoot At Dhaba Owner In Himachal's Mandi, Flee With Cash And TV; BJP Slams ‘Lawlessness’

Police have registered a case under sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the Arms Act, forming a special investigation team to track the culprits. 

Two motorcycle-borne assailants shot a dhaba owner in Himachal Pradesh’s Mandi district after he caught them stealing cash from the counter, police said on Saturday.

The incident took place on Friday night when the duo ordered a packed meal. As Pradeep Guleria, the owner from Dayari Tilli, prepared the food, he noticed them attempting theft. When he confronted them, they opened fire, injuring him before escaping with cash and an LED TV.  

According to a report by news agency PTI, Guleria is receiving treatment at a medical college in Nerchowk. Police have registered a case under sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the Arms Act, forming a special investigation team to track the culprits. 

In a press note, Mandi police said, "During the intervening night of 21-22 March, an incident was reported at Police Station Sadar, District Mandi by a complainant Pradeep Guleria that on 21.03.2025 at around midnight, two bikers came to his Dhaba and asked pack meals. When he was packing meals for them, he saw that the persons are stealing cash from his Counter. When he tried to stop them, one of the persons drew a revolver-like weapon and fired it on the Dhaba owner. The dhaba owner is safe and is under treatment."

"The accused persons also took also took an LED TV from the Dhaba. Taking prompt action, an FIR has been registered at Police Station Sadar. Special Investigating Team (SIT) has also bean constituted to investigate the case," the note read.

Manhunt Is Underway

Initial findings indicate the rider wore a white cap while the pillion rider had a black helmet. A manhunt is underway. Meanwhile, Leader of Opposition and BJP's Jai Ram Thakur, Guleria’s former classmate, visited him and promised to raise the issue in the Vidhan Sabha.

In a video message, Thakur said on Saturday that there is lack of law and order in the state and the firing incident at the residence of a former Congress MLA is a strong example.

He further added in the video message that the youth in Punjab are creating chaos in the Himachal Pradesh, as seven vehicles from the state were vandalised in Punjab.

This marks the second firing incident in the state within a week. Previously, former Congress MLA Bamber Thakur was attacked by four unidentified indivisuals at his wife's government residence, while he was sitting in the courtyard amid Holi celebrations. During the incident, Thakur had suffered a bullet injury to his leg and his personal security officer Sanjeev Kumar faced multiple bullet injuries.