GUWAHATI: A man accused of attacking a minor girl and her cousin in Assam's Nalbari district was killed in police firing on Monday after he allegedly snatched a police officer's service rifle and opened fire while attempting to escape from custody.
The deceased, Ashik Ali alias Roj, was grievously injured in the firing and succumbed to his injuries later. The incident came a day after Ali had allegedly attacked a 17-year-old girl, Mridumudra Deka, and her cousin Madhurjya Barman (20) with a machete at Gangapur in the Mukalmua area of lower Assam’s Nalbari district on Sunday evening, when the two were returning home from somewhere.
Madhurjya, a local leader of All Assam Students’ Union, died on the spot, sparking a massive protest by the student body as well as some other organisations in Nalbari on Monday.
Mridumudra, a Class 12 girl, is admitted at the Gauhati Medical College and Hospital in Guwahati. Her condition was stated to be critical.
The accused had gone underground after the attack but the police tracked him down at a remote sandbar in Mukalmua and nabbed him.
"After his arrest, he was leading us to the site where he concealed the murder weapon. However, suddenly, he snatched one of our rifles and fired four rounds at us to try and escape. The policemen fired in retaliation and a bullet hit him on the chest," Nalbari Superintendent of Police Bibekananda Das said.
The girl’s family alleged that Ali had subjected her to harassment and also threatened her with dire consequences for rejecting his advances.