Purnea, Nov. 4: Three persons died and four were grievously injured on Sunday when criminals opened fire on them at Bhapsara village in the district following a dispute over land.

The deceased have been identified as Karan Tuddu (36), Rakesh Tuddu (36) and Manjul Desra (55) — all residents of the village, under the jurisdiction of Barhara police station and situated about 75km southwest of the district headquarters. The injured — Tala Hafda, Daso Tuddu, Talu Hafda and Sarwan Tuddu — have been admitted to Purnea sadar hospital.

Confirming the deaths, superintendent of police Amit Lodha said: “The deceased belonged to the Santhal community. They had allegedly encroached on a land in the village and were farming on it.”

He added: “We have learnt that the owners of the land live in Madhepura. According to the information with us, Madhepura residents Sitaram Yadav and Sanjay Yadav recently purchased the land. We are still trying to find out who owns the land.” The bodies have been sent to Purnea sadar hospital for post-mortem.

District magistrate N. Saravana Kumar announced Rs 5 lakh compensation for each of the deceased.