Two injured in shoot-out

By Our Staff Correspondent

MYSORE, AUG. 15. A 16- year-old boy and a police constable suffered bullet injuries in a shootout between Tamil Nadu police and a criminal in Nanjangud town today.

`Singapore' Rajkumar, wanted by the Tamil Nadu police for 36 heinous offences, arrived in the town in a car with a woman, Baby, to meet an accomplice, police said. Coimbatore rural police, who were tipped off, were waiting for him.

Realising that a trap had been laid for him, the criminal opened fire. Even as the police team returned the fire, Rajkumar reversed his car and opened fire at the public. He then fled with the police in pursuit.

Lingaraju of Yelandur taluk, who was waiting for a bus, and a Tamil Nadu constable, Shekar (37), were injured in the crossfire. Both were hospitalised here and the constable is said to be out of danger and the boy's condition is serious.

Rajkumar is understood to have given the slip to the police team by taking a deviation. They followed him up to Ullahalli and lost track of him. He is suspected to have driven towards T. Narsipur and from there to Mandya or Bangalore.

A red alert has been sounded in Mandya, Bangalore and Chamarajanagar. ``All exit points from the State have been sealed. He is an inter-State criminal operating in Bangalore, Mandya and Chamarajanagar districts,'' police said.

The Deputy Superintendent of Police, Nanjangud, Mr. Ravikanthe Gowda, who took part in the operation, told The Hindu that Rajkumar escaped from the Coimbatore police's custody while being escorted to court from jail about three months ago.

Mr. Gowda said, Rajkumar snatched a .9 mm pistol from the escort police and stole a car at gun-point. He was using the same car, by changing its registration number, and fired from the same pistol today. Mr. Gowda said the criminal had run short of money and had telephoned his former accomplice to arrange for money. The accomplice, who was angry with Rajkumar, offered to help in apprehending the criminal.

A team of 30 policemen from Coimbatore rural police, headed by the DSP, Mr. Shekar, arrived in the temple town at 5 a.m. A team of policemen, comprising Coimbatore rural police and Nanjangud town police, was constituted and a plan was chalked out to nab Rajkumar.

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