Illegal gravel mining: 2 shot dead in police encounter; 6 injured

Jaipur: Two men believed to be members of a gang involved in illegal gravel (bajari) mining were shot to death by a police team in Dholpur district on Friday evening. Six people including two policemen were injured in the encounter between miners and the police.

The incident took place in Basai Dang area of the district. According to senior police officers, Basai Dang SHO Heeralal Meena got a tip-off that a tractor carrying illegally mined gravel was to pass through a police checkpost. He reached the post with a quick response team (QRT). The miners rammed the tractor into the police vehicle on purpose and opened firing when the police team tried to intercept them.

The policemen also opened firing. Two men – identified as Sevak and Bholu – were shot dead. While Sevek died on the spot, Bholu succumbed to gun wounds on his way to Jaipur where he was being brought for treatment due to his critical condition.

Six people were injured. They included QRT constables Ishwari Singh and Rupendra singh. Ishwari Singh sustained bullet injuries on his leg, while Rupendra had his leg fractured. Three others – Jitendra, Naresh and Devendra were admitted to hospital in a critical condition.

Former MLA of Badi Jaswant Singh reached the government hospital in Dholpur with his supporters and accused the police of wrongfully firing at the miners. Keeping in view the tense situation, security has been stepped up in Dholpur and Bharatpur districts.