Eight people, including a 9-year-old boy, sustained bullet injuries in a clash between two groups of villagers over longstanding local rivalry.

The incident happened at Naora area at Rupganj upazila of Narayanganj district on Monday.

The injured were Akbar, 24, Tajel, 36, Joynal, 35, Shamim, 25, Muktar Hossain, 60, Nur Hossain, 24, Arif, 9, and Roman, 20.

Quoting witnesses, Dipak Kumar Saha, inspector of Rupganj Police Station, said an altercation broke out between the supporters of former Union Parishad Chairman Rafiqul Islam and former Union Parishad member Mosharraf Hossain, over a trifling matter.

At one stage, both groups opened fire, leaving eight people shot suffering bullet injuries.

They were first taken to the local hospital and then shifted to Dhaka Medical College and Hospital for better treatment.

The situation is under control, said Inspector Dipak. However, no official complaint has been lodged as yet.

Additional police have been deployed in the area to avert further trouble, the inspector added.