Shimla, Mar 18 (PTI) Two out of four people who attacked former Congress MLA Bamber Thakur have been identified and three persons including the driver of the vehicle used in the crime have been arrested, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu told the House on Tuesday.

Bamber Thakur was attacked by four assailants at the government residence of his wife on Friday afternoon (Holi) in Bilapsur when he was sitting in the courtyard. He had suffered a bullet injury in his leg while his personal security officer (PSO) Sanjeev Kumar had received multiple bullet injuries.

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A case under BNS Section 109 (attempt to murder) and Section 3(5) (criminal act done by multiple people), and Section 25 of the Arms Act has been registered against unknown people and a special investigation team was constituted to probe the case.

"Both Thakur and his PSO are out of danger and are undergoing treatment at IGMC Shimla and AIIMS Bilaspur respectively," he said and added that the forensic team has collected samples from the spot.

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The vehicle used in crime has also been seized, he added.

Two of the four attackers who were dropped in a vehicle near the residence of the former MLA and who had opened fire have been identified by the police as Aman and Sagar. Both hail from Rohtak district of Haryana, he said and added that CCTV footage of the accused have been shared with the Haryana police and their help is being taken to trace the accused.

Sukhu said the cops are investigating the CCTV footage, intelligent traffic management system (ITMS), internet protocol detail record (IPDR), call detail record (CDR), dump data and other digital evidence. Police teams have been sent to the neighbouring states, he added.

He informed the House that 24 empty shells of 7.62 mm, 7.65 mm and 9 mm were recovered from the spot while 10 live bullets of 7.65 mm, one empty shell of 8 mm and one empty magazine were found in the vehicle.

The place where the attackers stayed has also been located. The three persons arrested earlier -- driver of the vehicle Ritesh (24), and Rohit Kumar (29) and Manjeet Singh (33) involved in the conspiracy -- were sent to four days' police custody till March 19. All three are from Bilaspur district.

Strict action would be taken against the accused and prevention of continuing unlawful activity and control of organised crime bill 2025 will be introduced in the House to ensure that such incidents do not take place in the future, the CM said.

He also appreciated the PSO whose bravery and firing response after being hit by the bullets saved lives.

Condemning the firing incident, Leader of Opposition Jai Ram Thakur said it is unfortunate that gang war is going on in 'Dev Bhoomi' Himachal Pradesh which is against the traditions of the state and demanded strict action against the accused.

He said while the investigations are underway, Bamber Thakur is making political statements and taking names. He asked the chief minister to restrain the former MLA from making allegations.

Responding to the Leader of Opposition, Sukhu said he would talk to Bamber Thakur at a personal level.

Earlier on Saturday, Bamber Thakur had alleged that the local BJP MLA from Bilaspur is protecting the Chitta smugglers who attacked him.

Jai Ram Thakur also raised the issue of people from other states creating ruckus in Himachal and said a bus from Manali was stopped by some people holding swords and the driver was forced to put the photograph of Bhindranwale in the bus.

He asked the CM to talk to the Punjab government in this regard.

Earlier on Saturday, two separate FIRs were registered in Manali and Manikaran police stations in the Kullu district. Two boys with the flag of Bhindranwale on their bike had threatened to kill when they were asked to remove the flag in Manali last Wednesday.

In another incident, some bikers with the flag of Bhindranwale had attacked a person with swords and had an altercation with a couple when asked to remove the flags on Saturday.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)