Pune: A history-sheeter, who had thrown acid on a 25-year-old man on Tilak Road on Tuesday night before shooting himself dead, was earlier booked by police for sexually harassing the mother of the injured, an officer said on Wednesday. Police suspect that the deceased Siddharam Kalshetty, aged around 28, went berserk because he was frustrated over the case filed against him by the woman.
In a high drama that unfolded on the busy road, Kalshetty hurled acid on the man, fired at him and at police personnel who cornered him, before shooting himself in the head in a building where he was hiding, the senior officer said. “After throwing acid, Kalshetty fired a round in the back of the man and fled in a nearby building where he hid,” the Vishrambauig police station officer said.
When police personnel tried to get inside the building, Kalshetty fired two rounds at them from the terrace, he said. “However, after realising that he might get captured, Kalshetty shot himself in the head,” the officer said, adding that he fell into the duct of the building.
His body was later taken out with the help of fire brigade personnel. When asked about the likely provocation behind the attack, the officer said the mother of the injured man had lodged a case of sexual harassment against Kalshetty a few months ago, and he was about to be chargesheeted.
“The deceased executed the attack on the son of the woman, as he was frustrated and angry over the case,” said the officer. The injured man is recuperating at a hospital, he said. Police recovered a country-made firearm and some sharp-edged weapons from the spot where Kalshetty shot himself dead. “We will record statement of the injured man,” he said.
