Akshay Shinde, a man arrested for the rape of two girls at a school in Badlapur, Maharashtra, was fatally shot by police on Monday after he seized a weapon from an officer and fired at them. The incident left two police officers injured.
The police reported that Shinde grabbed the firearm from an officer while being transported in a police vehicle around 5:30 pm. A gunfight ensued, during which several shots were exchanged, resulting in injuries to the officers.
Police returned fire on Shinde, who was being transported from Taloja jail to Badlapur for an investigation, officials said. He sustained critical injuries during the shootout and later died in the hospital.
The injured officials in the incident are Assistant Police Inspector Nilesh More and Inspector Sanjay Shinde, who shot the accused. Sanjay Shinde had previously been involved in the arrest of Dawood Ibrahim’s brother, Iqbal Kaskar while serving in the Thane Crime Branch’s Anti-Extortion Cell under encounter specialist Pradeep Sharma. He is currently part of the Special Investigation Team (SIT) investigating the Badlapur case.
The incident has sparked political controversy, with the opposition questioning the circumstances, while the government maintains it was an act of self-defence. Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis stated that the rape accused attempted to seize a police firearm and opened fire, prompting the police to respond in self-defence.
