Sambalpur: A dreaded criminal sustained bullet injuries in an encounter with police near Rangiatikra village in Odisha’s Sambalpur district, early on Sunday.
He has been identified as Sitaram Sarangi (34) of Sargdihi village under Gobindpur police limits in Sambalpur. Over 25 cases pertaining to dacoity, robbery, and attempt to murder are pending against Sitaram across three districts in the state.
According to sources, a police team conducted a raid this morning at around 5 am, acting on specific intelligence, to apprehend him in a dacoity case. He opened fire at police to evade arrest but was hit in the left leg as the latter retaliated in self defence.
Sitaram was initially admitted to Kuchinda sub-divisional hospital and later referred to VIMSAR, Burla, for treatment.
Police recovered a 7.65 mm country-made pistol, one live round, two fired cartridges, a motorcycle without a number plate and cash amounting to Rs 1 lakh from his possession.
A scientific team later visited the encounter site to collect evidence. Further investigation is underway.
Odisha Police have stepped up ‘non-fatal encounter’ operations in a bid to combat criminal activities in the state. This operation marked the 11th such armed confrontation between cops and criminals in various districts between February 17 and April 13.
On Saturday, two men accused of raping a minor girl were injured in a police encounter as they attempted to escape custody while being transported to a court in Jharsuguda district. A habitual drug peddler was arrested following a brief exchange of fire near Khandagiri hills in Bhubaneswar on Friday. The state capital witnessed seven arrests following exchange of fire on February 17, March 9, April 3 and April 11.