Close on the heels of Vikas Dubey encounter killing, the Uttar Pradesh police late on Wednesday night gunned down gangster Deepak Siddhu in an encounter in Meerut district. According to police, a sub-inspector was injured in the incident that took place in the Rohta police station area.
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Deepak, a history-sheeter, was third in the top 10 list of criminals in the district. He was wanted in more than a dozen cases of murder and dacoity, including the recent Ankur Bharadwaj murder. Carrying a reward of ₹50,000 on his head, he is said to be a member of the Yogesh Bhadauda gang, whose leader is lodged in Siddharthnagar jail.
Jitendra Sargam, Circle Officer, Sardhana, who led the encounter team, said he was informed by the SHO Rohta that two gangsters were indulging in a loot of passengers on the Suroorpur-Lohargarh route.
“When we challenged them, they opened fired at us, injuring sub-inspector Anuj Malik. When we fired in self defence, Deepak was injured and another managed to escape in the nearby jungle,” said Mr. Sargam.
Deepak, a resident of Sardhana, died during treatment at the government hospital, he added.
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According to an official release, two pistols and some live and used cartridges were recovered from the spot. It said Deepak was wanted in the kidnapping and murder of Vijay Tyagi and wanted in some cases in Haryana as well.
The Uttar Pradesh police have shot dead 123 alleged criminals in the last three years in encounters.
Abu Salem aide held
Meanwhile, the Noida unit of the Special Task Force of the Uttar Pradesh Police nabbed Gajendra Singh, a key aide of notorious gangster Abu Salem, from Mumbai late on Wednesday night, officials said. Singh was known to invest Salem’s illicit money in property in Delhi-NCR. Salem is presently lodged in a Mumbai jail in connection with the Mumbai blasts’ case of 2003.
Raj Kumar Mishra, Additional Superintendent of Police, STF said Gajendra was also wanted in a case of his shooters opening fire on a Delhi-based businessman in Noida after he sought return of his money that amounted to about Rs 2 crore. “The shooters were hired from another gangster Khan Mubarak and we have cracked the money trail,” Mr. Mishra added.