Ghanakanta Gogoi, accused of shooting five people dead at Hotel Bilas Inn in Guwahati, was killed in a police encounter early Wednesday.
Ghanakanta Gogoi was arrested by Sivasagar police in a 2024 bank fraud case on Tuesday, hours after a court in Guwahati remanded him to judicial custody following the completion of seven days of police remand in the hotel firing case.
Police opened fire, leaving him critically injured. Sivasagar Town Police Sub-Inspector Debashish Sharma was also injured in the incident. “When he alighted from the police vehicle to relieve himself, he tried to snatch the service weapon of our investigating officer. There was a fight with the accused, and our officer was badly injured. To save our officer, the PSO of the Sivasagar Sadar Police Station officer-in-charge had to fire. The court subsequently directed the police to ensure safeguards and laid down conditions for the seven-day police custody. The court had issued directions on evidence recovery, security and medical examinations, while prohibiting custodial torture and directing police to provide basic necessities. The shooting stemmed from an alleged dispute between the owners of the property and its leaseholder, Gogoi, over the management of the hotel.
Gogoi was arrested by Sivasagar police in a 2024 bank fraud case on Tuesday, hours after a court in Guwahati remanded him to judicial custody following the completion of seven days of police remand in the hotel firing case. Five people, including four from a business family, were killed and another person was injured in the firing incident at Hotel Bilas Inn in Bora Service area of Guwahati on October 26.
Gogoi allegedly attacked the police personnel and attempted to escape from custody, according to preliminary reports. “He was a trained shooter and an experienced person with different weapons,” Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Papori Chetia said. Gogoi’s lawyer had earlier raised “encounter” fears over his safety while he was in police custody.
