MADURAI: A 29-year-old history-sheeter was shot dead by a police inspector in an encounter on Monday evening in the Keerathurai police station limits in Madurai city, after he allegedly attempted to escape by attacking two police constables and firing an illegal country-made pistol at the inspector.
Police identified the deceased as V Subash Chandra Bose of Pangajam Colony in Teppakulam in Madurai city. He was wanted for the murder of P Kaleeshwaran, a history-sheeter who was murdered by a gang on March 23 in Austinpatti, on the outskirts of the city.
Kaleeshwaran was the nephew of former DMK councillor VK Gurusamy. Gurusamy has a two-decade-long rivalry with a gang linked with late AIADMK functionary Rajapandian due to which at least 20 people have died, Kaleeshwaran being the last. Bose was a close associate of Rajapandian’s near relative Vellaikaali, police said.
‘Bose attacked cops with machete, inspector shot him in self-defence’
After the encounter, Bose was rushed with a gunshot wound in the chest to a private hospital nearby, where doctors declared him dead. The body was shifted to the Government Rajaji Hospital for post-mortem. Head constable Karnan and constable Saravanankumar, who both sustained injuries in their shoulders, are undergoing treatment in the hospital.
Commissioner of Police (Madurai city) Loganathan, who inspected the crime scene, said the inspector Boominathan, along with the two other policemen, attempted to arrest Bose.
However, he allegedly attacked both constables with a machete. Though the inspector warned him to surrender, Bose fired at him with an illegal pistol, Loganathan said, adding that the bullet missed and entered the suspect’s used car instead. In an act of self-defence, the inspector fired at Bose, he said.
“Although he aimed at his leg, Bose moved and received the fatal shot in his chest,” the commissioner said.
Police sources said there were 21 cases pending against Bose, including three for murder. Police said a team had caught a group with ganja, which claimed that Bose had supplied the drug. Subsequently, police alerted personnel at checkposts to look for him and he was nabbed driving a car in the outskirts of Chinthamani where the encounter took place around 6.30 pm. The loaded illegal pistol and machete were seized from the spot.