• Child dies from accidental gunfire during play

• Investigation ongoing, rifle seized, family claims examined

A seven-year-old boy died in Morena district, Madhya Pradesh, India, after being accidentally shot while playing with other children, police said.

The incident occurred Saturday night in Sanjay Nagar, Porsa, where the victim, Rishabh Tomar, was playing on the second floor of a rented house with the landlord’s sons when the gun discharged.

Police said the landlord’s 14-year-old son picked up his father’s licensed rifle, hanging in the room, and while the children were handling it, the gun fired unexpectedly, striking Rishabh in the head and killing him instantly.

The gunfire alerted family members and neighbors, who rushed upstairs and found the child lying in a pool of blood.

Police arrived quickly and transported Rishabh’s body to the Porsa mortuary for an autopsy.

Initial investigations revealed that the rifle belonged to the landlord, a private security guard, who had arrived in Porsa a day before the incident and left the weapon at home before traveling to his village Saturday morning.

The rifle was seized, and the landlord taken in for questioning.

Preliminary findings indicate the shooting was accidental while the children played unsupervised, though Rishabh’s family expressed concerns, claiming a different weapon was used and alleging the landlord fled with the original rifle.

Police said they are investigating both the accidental shooting and the family’s claims, examining all angles to take necessary action based on the investigation results.