In an early hour encounter on Tuesday in the Jhinjhana area of Shamli district, the sleuths of the Special Task Force (STF) killed four criminals, officials said.
Arshad, carrying a reward of Rs 1 lakh, and three of his associates from a gang, who were hardcore criminals operating in Western UP, Haryana, and Uttarakhand, were killed, they added.
However, STF Inspector Sunil was also injured in the encounter. He was admitted to Amritdhara Hospital in Karnal and later referred to Medanta Hospital in Gurugram.
Director General of Police (DGP) Prashant Kumar on Tuesday said that one of the accused identified as Arshad was an active member of the Mukim Kala gang and was carrying a bounty of Rs 1 lakh.
After the death of Mukim Kala, Arshad formed his own gang and was continuously involved in criminal activities in the neighbouring areas of Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, the police official said.
Arshad was wanted in a robbery case in the Saharanpur district and had committed several other crimes. The encounter took place in the early hours of Tuesday in the village of Ud Pur (near the UP-Haryana border) in the Jhinjhana area of UP’s Shamli district.
Kumar said, “One of the miscreants killed has been identified as Arshad, and there was a reward of Rs 1 lakh on him. He was wanted in a robbery case in Saharanpur district. His other two companions have been identified as Manjeet, hailing from Sonipat, and Satish, a resident of Karnal. One Brezza car, two pistols, one carbine, and three guns have also been recovered from them. Arshad was an active member of the Mukim Kala gang and had more than 16 cases against him, five of which were for murder. He was released in June 2024 and became active again, forming his own gang and continuing his criminal activities in the neighbouring areas of Haryana and UP.”
The police official said that during the encounter, Inspector Sunil was seriously injured and is in critical condition. He is undergoing treatment at Medanta Hospital in Gurugram, Haryana.
STF ASP Brijesh Kumar told the media that the team surrounded Arshad, a resident of Bahri Majra village in Thana Gangoh of Saharanpur district, on the information that he was hiding in Jhinjhana.
During this, Arshad and his three companions were killed in the firing by the STF team in response to the bullets fired by the criminals.
Arshad had 18 cases of murder, robbery, and loot registered against him, including cases of robbery and loot in Behat of Saharanpur, murder and attempt to murder in Thana Gangoh, robbery in Thana Nanauta, and murder in Thana Rampur Maniharan.
Apart from Muzaffarnagar and Shamli, cases of fraud and criminal conspiracy are also registered in Panipat district of Haryana. He said that a reward of Rs 1 lakh had been declared on the notorious Arshad by Meerut Zone ADG DK Thakur. Arshad was wanted in a robbery case from Thana Behat (Saharanpur).