Barely hours after Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar asked police officials to pull up their socks and not leave anything on bhagwan bharose (mercy of God), a police official late on Friday night was killed in an encounter with criminals in Khagaria district of the state.
On a tip off Parsaha police inspector Ashish Kumar Singh led a team of policemen to arrest gangster Dinesh Muni in Salarpur riverine area of Khagaria district and engaged in encounter with them.
The remote Salarpur riverine area is known to be a hiding place for notorious criminals in the state.
Police had also got information that criminals of neighbouring Naugachhia district too had congregated at the place.
The criminals started firing at policemen and a fierce encounter took place between them late on Friday night.
A bullet hit Ashish Kumar Singh on his chest and he died on the spot. Another policeman too was injured in the encounter while a criminal too was shot and injured.
Later, senior police officers including Meenu Kumari and Pramod Kumar Jha reached the spot with reinforcement. No criminal was arrested yet in the intensive combing operation launched by the policemen in the area.
Known as a brave police officer, Ashish Kumar Singh, a 2009 batch Inspector, had survived a bullet injury after he was shot at during an encounter with local gangsters in the same area.
Earlier in the day on Friday while inaugurating a new building for police headquarter, chief minister Nitish Kumar had asked police officials to pull up their socks and not to leave things bhagwan bharose (God’s mercy).
“It is a fine structure which would help you to work efficiently...get your act together and spare some thoughts for keeping corruption and crime under control…do not leave things bhagwan bharose”, said Nitish Kumar.