KOLKATA/MALDA: A 25-year-old murder accused, absconding after shooting two policemen escorting him to jail on Wednesday, was shot dead in an encounter while trying to flee to Bangladesh near the border in Chopra in West Bengal’s North Dinajpur on Saturday morning.
Sajjak Alam, being escorted back to Raiganj prison from an Islampur court where he was facing a murder trial, had requested ASI Deban Baishya and constable Nilkanta Sarkar to stop the prison van at Panjipara under Goalpokhar police station, claiming he needed to relieve himself. When the vehicle stopped, he fired four shots at the policemen and fled. An investigation revealed that the gun had been supplied to him by Abdul Hossain, a Bangladeshi criminal, on the court premises.
Sajjak, carrying a 2-lakh bounty on his head, was intercepted by an eight-member police team led by DIG Sudheer Kumar Neelakantam at 7 am. He was asked to surrender but he responded by firing “three to four rounds” from his 9 mm pistol, prompting retaliatory firing. He succumbed to his injuries an hour later while undergoing surgery at a local hospital.
The encounter occurred 48 hours after DGP Rajeev Kumar had said, “If someone fires at cops, we can fire back four times.” Kumar had rushed to Siliguri to visit the injured officers a day after Sajjak’s escape.
ADG (Law and Order) Jawed Shamim said, “We are professionals. We are tough on criminals. Every officer, from constable to DGP, knows the risks when entering service. We are trained to respond appropriately. This is not the first time an encounter has occurred in Bengal. A Punjab gangster was also gunned down in New Town.”
The ADG confirmed that four officers, including the officer in charge and others responsible for its security, have been suspended pending further investigation.