Guwahati hotel killing accused held; Assam Police announce SIT probe

The Assam Police have formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to investigate the killing of five individuals, including two women, at a hotel in Guwahati on Monday night. Ankur Jain, the Joint Commissioner of Police for Guwahati, will lead the SIT. Ghanakanta Gogoi, 34, was arrested an hour after the incident, allegedly shooting them dead during a dispute over the hotel's lease and management.

The police received information about gunshots being fired inside the hotel in the Ulubari area around 9:00 p.m. Upon arrival, they found four bodies in the hotel reception area and two injured persons on the approach road. The injured were taken to Gauhati Medical College and Hospital (GMCH), where one of them later died. The deceased were identified as Bhudev Bharali, 65; Helena Bharali, 58; Debarshi Kashyap, 39; Rinika Kashyap, 30; and Narayan Das, 48. Helena Bharali, the co-owner of the property, survived the attack.

The accused, Ghanakanta Gogoi, is from Dibrugarh town in eastern Assam. The police stated that the hotel owners had entered a five-year lease agreement with Gogoi on September 10, 2025, for a monthly rent of around ₹1.8 lakh. Following renovations, disagreements arose over the use of the premises and certain facilities. A meeting was scheduled for October 26 to resolve these issues, but an argument escalated into a physical fight before Gogoi opened fire on six people.

A .32-calibre pistol was seized from Gogoi, who reportedly possessed a firearm license from Nagaland. It is believed that he wore Meta smart glasses equipped with cameras during the shooting. The footage, if recovered, could aid investigators in reconstructing the events. Gogoi also had a property-related case in Jorhat town in 2024.