A man was shot dead yesterday after a contractor mistook him for being part of a gang that carried out illegal fishing in his area of operation.

The incident took place yesterday in Karanpur village of Udaipur district near Vallabhnagar dam. Gopa Kalbeliya (30) was going towards his farm near Vallabhnagar dam. This is when fish contractor Lalit Tank and his accomplice saw him. They mistook him as being part of a gang that indulged in illegal fishing in the area. The contract took out his gun and fired at Gopa. The bullet hit Gopa in his chest and he died on the spot.

Police took the body to the hospital where a postmortem was carried out. A large crowd gathered at the spot. Meanwhile, the prime accused Lalit along with his other partners fled from the scene.

Police has lodged a case of murder and initiated investigation.