Rape accused gets shot on leg during attempt to escape

Guwahati: During an alleged attempt to escape, a man arrested for a rape case got injured in police firing in Assam's Nagaon district, PTI reported, citing the police's account.

Police said that the man was accused of raping a girl and was arrested in the Batadrava police station area on Wednesday. After he complained that he was experiencing chest pain, he was taken to a hospital on Wednesday night.

"On the way to the hospital, he wanted to relieve himself. But as soon as he got down from the vehicle, he pushed our personnel and started running," a police officer said.

The arrestee refused to stop even after multiple warnings, and the police resorted to firing. He was hit on his leg, police said. They said he is in treatment at the Gauhati Medical College and Hospital.

Meanwhile, in another incident at Agomoni of Dhubri district, a man was shot in the leg by the police during an operation to catch those involved in the shooting of a former ULFA (The United Liberation Front of Asom) cadre. Police said that the accused attempted to escape, and police shot him in his leg, but he is in stable condition at the moment.

However, in the state of Assam, the number of police encounters during attempts to escape is curiously high after Himanta Biswa Sarma assumed Chief Minister's office in May 2021. Forty-six people were killed and at least 110 injured in police firings during escape attempts here under Himanta Sarma's rule.