A firefighter during the protest in Bhavnagar on Sunday. (AP)

Ahmedabad, July 6: A Bhavnagar diamond worker demonstrating for a wage hike was killed and two others were injured today when a private security guard at their workshop fired to scare away the protesters.

About 500 workers had gathered before the unit in the town’s Kumudwadi area, pelting it with stones and shouting slogans against the owner, district police chief Anupam Singh Gehlot said.

Fearing more trouble, the guard fired four rounds from his 12-bore rifle, killing 23-year-old Vijay Jafaria on the spot. One of the two injured is reported to be critical.

The guard was arrested and police rushed to the trouble spot. The police lobbed tear gas shells to disperse the protesters. Soon, the 1,500-odd units in Bhavnagar downed shutters.

The protest followed a similar one in the diamond-polishing hub of Surat, where hundreds of cutters and polishers stayed off work yesterday. The agitation threatens to take the shine off the industry, where wages haven’t been raised for 15 years.

More trouble is expected, and the police are not ruling out the possibility of the Bhavnagar unrest spreading to neighbouring Amreli. Gehlot said steps were being taken to avert a flare-up.

“The administration is negotiating with the workers’ leaders and the diamond unit owners. A compromise formula may be worked out.”

The president of the Surat Diamond Workers Association, Babu Jariwala, dubbed the Bhavnagar situation “explosive” but was wary of “antisocials” sneaking in.

“We support the Bhavnagar workers but don’t want antisocial elements to take advantage. So we have decided not to call a bandh in Surat tomorrow.”

Congress legislature party leader Shaktisinh Gohil, who represents Bhavnagar, said the incident was a “serious matter” and blamed the Narendra Modi government for having failed to break the wage deadlock. He demanded a Rs 5-lakh compensation for Jafaria’s family.

Gehlot said the Bhavnagar situation was under control.