BANGALORE, July 17: The kidnapping of a silk merchant in the city earlier this week has drawn attention to the increasing gun culture in Bangalore. The .45 pistol used in the incident was a prohibited weapon, as also the .38 revolver used by associates of the underworld don Muthappa Rai on July 1 to shoot down a member of a rival gang. Police sources say lack of checking at railway stations and bus stations have made it easy for weapons, especially prohibitted ones, to be brought into the city.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.