In another shocking incident which demonstrates the blatant lawlessness that prevails in Uttar Pradesh, a gang of robbers shot dead two policemen who tried to confront them after an incident of loot in Firozabad district (west UP) on Sunday night.
Violent protests broke out in the city on Monday morning as an agitated mob fought a pitched battle with police. The Agra DIG received severe head injuries in the violence. Several locals protesting the killings were also injured. The government has announced an ex gratia relief of Rs 20 lakh to each of the two grief-stricken families.
Police said the two constables were shot dead by unidentified miscreants during a chase in the Ramgarh area of Firozabad. The incident took place when the constables, Dinesh Pratap Singh and Giriraj Kishore Gujjar, aged between 30-32 years, promptly reached the scene of crime around 2.30 am (Monday) on being informed of a factory worker having been looted at gunpoint.
The robbers were still in the area when the two cops reached there. Sensing trouble, they tried to escape. As the two cops challenged the half-a-dozen robbers, the latter opened fire at them. The robbers managed to flee, firing in the air. While Giriraj died on the spot, Dinesh was rushed to hospital, where he succumbed during treatment.
Protests erupted in the city at Subhash crossing near the district hospital with locals demanding immediate arrest of the still unidentified killeers. The angry mob held up traffic for several hours on NH-2, damaged several vehicles and shops and also set a police jeep on fire.
Agra Range DIG Vijay Singh Meena was one of those injured as the irate crowd resorted to brick-batting. He received four stiches on the head.
Following the incident, SO Ramgarh Ajay Kumar Yadav and sub-inspector Omar Farooq have been suspended, an official spokesman told reporters here.
The protesters, meanwhile, have also demanded that a case be registered against the Ramgarh SO and also called for the removal of additional superintendent of police Rakesh Pandey. They alleged before the media that the cops had been deliberately sent to challenge the gang of six armed robbers as part of a "conspiracy".
"Why couldn't the local police set up barricades hours after the incident. The gang also came across a police picket while escaping but were not even accosted," said one of the protestors. The robbers had fired at the police picket while fleeing but were not challenged, official sources here confirmed.
IG (law and order) Amrendra Sengar told reporters here that a manhunt had been launched to nab the assailants and some suspects had been taken into custody for possible leads to the killers.
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