An alleged dispute over why a bike rider had overtaken another on Friday afternoon culminated in a group of young men firing several rounds at the 29-year-old biker at the intersection of Kyd Street and Mirza Ghalib Street early on Saturday.

Ekhlas Beg was admitted to the Calcutta National Medical College and Hospital with a bullet injury on his right leg, police said.

Doctors said there were injuries on the ligaments and muscles of his right leg but his condition was stable.

The police said eyewitnesses told them that a group of around 40-50 youths had turned up to “teach him a lesson”. The police have zeroed in on Sona as the prime accused in the case.

Sona is the brother-in-law of Gabbar, an old-time extortionist in the Park Street area. He has several criminal cases pending against him, the police said.

A case of attempt to murder under the Indian Penal Code and the provisions of the arms act have been drawn up at the Park Street police station against Sona and his associates.

The police have begun scanning CCTV footage to find out how the incident played out a little after Friday midnight when the gang opened fire.

Eyewitnesses have told the police that several rounds were fired to scare Beg and one of the bullets grazed his leg.

“Beg is a resident of Taltala and he has a business in central Calcutta. We have recorded his statement. It appears that Sona and his men had turned up to teach a lesson to Beg,” said a senior police officer.

Senior police officers said Sona had threatened Beg after the latter overtook him while riding a two-wheeler down Kyd Street on Friday afternoon.

A section of shop owners who were witness to a heated exchange between Sona and Beg after the two got off their motorcycles on Kyd Street told the investigating officers that both of them had left after the brawl ended.

It seemed the matter had been resolved, they told the police.

“Around 12.30am, a group of around 40-50 youths turned up near a shop at the crossing of Kyd Street and Mirza Ghalib Street and opened fire. We were all asleep when the gang arrived,” said Mahadul Khan, a resident of the area. “The police arrived soon,” Khan said.

A police post was set up early on Saturday around the spot where the bullets were fired.

A team from the detective department and the local Park Street police station were at the spot.

The officers said while the immediate trigger could have been racing and over-
taking between two motorcycles, there was something more that led Sona and his gang to turn up within eight hours of the brawl and open fire.