Wedding celebrations are supposed to be happy events but a shocking number of them end tragically because of the unsafe tradition of celebratory gunfire. This practice sometimes results in unexpected deaths and injuries from bullets. It is a custom in some rural Indian weddings where guns are shot to welcome newlyweds into married life.

A distressing incident has come to light from Haryana, where a self-proclaimed god-woman and her guards fired several shots in the air at a wedding at Savitri Marriage Palace in Karnal, Haryana. The firing killed the groom’s aunt and left three of his relatives critically wounded.

Sadhvi Deva Thakur was at a wedding venue where she fired her revolver to celebrate the event. Her men also fired shots in the air for several rounds. The armed bunch allegedly aimed at the crowded dance floor and kept firing even as the families of the bride and groom begged them not to. As the groom’s aunt collapsed, the Sadhvi and her group ran away. The groom’s aunt Suman(50) was rushed to a private hospital where she succumbed to her injuries, including an 11-year-old girl.

Police have booked Sadhvi Deva Thakur and her associates under Section-302 of IPC and Arms Act. The accused are absconding.

This is not the only incident of its kind. Earlier in March, a horrifying news came to light when the father of a groom was shot in the head during gunfire celebrations in Jandla village, Punjab.

Another Uttar Pradesh incident in February 2016 saw a groom himself killed, as he was en route to the bride’s home on a horse. As a guest fired shots into the air, the groom was hit in the head.

Groom Amit Rastogi was only 28 when he fell off his horse and died. The list of gunshot wounds administered during Indian weddings goes on. Celebratory gunfire is the shooting of a firearm into the air in celebration.

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