Police arrested two persons in connection with a shootout in a Itahari-based hotel in which two persons sustained bullet injuries on Tuesday. 

Hotel owner Jangaman Rai and Torna Bahadur Poudel of Dhankuta were injured when a man staying in the hotel shot at them on Tuesday morning. The suspect, who registered his name in the hotel as Rabindra Thapa from Khandbari, fled soon after the incident. According to investigation officers, the name and address of the suspect registered in the hotel are fake. 

Rai was hit at his chest and stomach while Poudel sustained injuries in his right arms. Rai is receiving treatment at BP Koirala Institute of Health Sciences, while Poudel was discharged following treatment. Police suspect that the incident might have happened after a gambling dispute in the hotel the previous night. The investigation is under way, said police. The security personnel recovered four bullet shells and a bullet from the incident site. The suspect is learnt to have first fired at Poudel while he was asleep at his hotel room at around 4am. 

According to Deputy Superintendent of Police Naresh Raj Subedi, two persons, including an Indian national, were arrested but the main accused is still on the run. He refused to name the arrested duo stating that it could affect the investigation.