Sub-Inspector killed in Greater Noida encounter

A Sub-Inspector was allegedly shot dead as police attempted to nab criminals on the run early on Monday. Police said 40-year-old Akhtar Khan was leading a team, which raided a hideout of Fukran and Javed at Nai Abadi area of Dadri, 30 km from Delhi.

Khan was the first to enter the hideout of the criminals who are wanted in cases of armed robberies.

According to senior police officers, the police team was conducting a raid on a tip off of a dreaded criminal gang hiding in a house who opened fire at the police party. The parents and relatives of the deceased cop questioned the process of encounter and refused to perform his last rites till the accused are arrested.

According to police, they received a tip off from an informer that infamous history-sheeter Javed Warsi, alias Sultan, was hiding with his gang in a house in Nai Abadi area. 

The Station House Officer of Dadri police station, Hom Singh Yadav, prepared a team of 12 police personnel with three Sub-Inspectors including Akhtar Khan and reached the spot at 4 am to nab the criminals. Javed was wanted in more than 15 criminal cases including murder, kidnapping and loot. As the police team reached the hiding spot, Akhtar took charge of the team and lead from the front and entered into the house of one Furkan, where they were hiding. “As he entered the house, the criminals opened fire and a bullet hit in the neck. He was rushed to a nearby government hospital but was declared brought dead,” said Sujeet Pandey, Inspector General of Police, Meerut Range, Uttar Pradesh, who is monitoring the situation. The criminals took advantage of the situation and fled the spot. 

Director general of police Javeed Ahmad paid his respects on Twitter. “A brave police officer laid down his life in the line of duty. SALUTE SI AKHTAR KHAN (sic),” he posted.

The family of the deceased Sub-Inspector, however, has a different story to tell. 

“The police team left him injured at the spot and fled away. They returned around 2-3 hours back and till then he was lying in pain, unattended,” said Wahid, Akhtar’s elder brother. The locals also alleged that the entire police team fled the spot when the criminals started firing, leaving Akhtar in a pool of blood for hours.

Akhtar Khan, who joined the force in 1998 as a constable, was posted as in-charge of Kot police post of Dadri area. Hailing from Aligarh, he had cleared the internal exams to become a Sub-Inspector. “They left Akhtar behind after Javed and gang opened fire. When the cops reached the police station, they realised that Akhtar was left behind. Then the cops waited for around one hour for the backup and after an hour, returned to the spot. They then took Akhtar to the hospital but he was already dead by then,” said Mohammed Iqbal, uncle of Khan. The family has demanded a CBI probe into the matter.

The police have formed 14 teams to nab the criminals and IG Meerut, Sujit Pandey, is himself supervising the operation. “SHO Dadri has been suspended for dereliction of duty and an internal inquiry under Deputy Superintended of Police level officer has been ordered to fix responsibility,” said Pandey. According to sources one of the accused Aurangzeb has been caught by the police. The government has declared a reward of Rs 50,000 each on Javed, Furkaan, Mustakeen and another accused.