Constable shot dead in Delhi

A Delhi Police constable was killed and another sustained serious injuries when some unidentified people fired at them Monday, police said.

The attack took place around 1:30 a.m. in west Delhi's Vijay Vihar when the two policemen were patrolling the area.

The dead constable was identified as Jagbir, 42, while the injured policeman, Narendra, 35, is undergoing treatment at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, a police officer said.

"At the time of the incident, the constables were on night patrol on a motorbike. They found some people sitting in an auto-rickshaw in Vijay Vihar," Deputy Commissioner of Police Vikramjit Singh told IANS.

He said the policemen found their activities suspicious and questioned them. When they could not come up with satisfactory answers, the two constables left the bike and sat in the auto to take them to Vijay Vihar police station.

The official said: "The suspects, who were five in number, including the auto-rickshaw driver, went a few metres but then stopped the vehicle suddenly and engaged in a scuffle with the constables."

One of the assailants opened fire on both the constables from close range, leaving Jagbir in a pool of blood with a chest injury. Narendra tried to run towards Vijay Vihar police station, which was around 200 metres from the spot, while shouting for help but he was shot in the back.

Jagbir died on the spot while Narendra was rushed to a hospital before being shifted to Sir Ganga Ram Hospital where his condition is said to be serious.

The attackers managed to escape.

An FIR has been registered under sections of murder, attempt to murder, the Arms Act and others and several teams have fanned out to nab the unidentified attackers.

"The attackers seemed seasoned criminals as they even took away the policemen's arms with them," said the official.

In a similar act, three men had opened fire Saturday night on two constables in the Connaught Place area. But no one was injured in the incident while one of the attackers was arrested.