The firing took place following an altercation between Major Maninderpal Singh and two youth working as his sources Firdaus Ahmad and Javed Ahmad at Par Mohalla in Pattan area, 30 kms from here, the sources said.
The army officer, dressed in civvies, was carrying a pistol which was snatched by Firdaus and Javed who fired two shots before fleeing from the spot, the sources said.
One bullet pierced through Major Singh's chest while another hit 70-year-old Ghulam Ahmad Mir in the leg, the sources said.
The army officer was taken to a military hospital at the Badamibagh Cantonment here and operated upon, the sources said adding his condition is stated to be stable.
While Javed has been arrested, search is on for Firdaus, the sources said.
The sources said the army is investigating why the officer had left his 29 Rashtriya Rifles camp in civvies and without any escort.
Srinagar-based Defence spokesman Lt Colonel J S Brar said he cannot comment on the incident as he was not able to get through to the General Officer Commanding (GOC) of the 15 Corps here.
