Bengaluru: Police shoot at, arrest murder accused

Bengaluru: The K.R. Puram police opened fire at an accused who had murdered a rowdy in broad daylight on Thursday, after he tried to attack the police with lethal weapons to evade arrest.

The accused Charan Raj, 34, is a resident of Seegehalli. A policeman also sustained injuries and is being treated.

The deceased, Manjunath, a resident of Priyanka Nagar in KR Puram, was listed as a rowdy sheeter at the KR Puram police station as he was involved in several crimes. But a few months ago, he had stopped all his anti-social activities and had started working as a water tanker driver to lead a normal life.

He had purchased a land from Charan Raj and reportedly paid only half the amount, refusing to pay the rest. He had constructed a house on the same land and started living with his family. He allegedly threatened Charan when he demanded the money.

Charan then hatched a plan with his brother Sunder Raj and his other associates to kill Manjunath. On Thursday afternoon, as soon as Manjunath walked out of a hotel in Medahalli after distributing water, they attacked him and killed him on the spot.

Around 5 am on Friday, the police received credible information that Charan was riding a two-wheeler in Kadugodi and was heading home. The police rushed to the spot, chased him till Dommasandra and intercepted his bike. The police asked him to surrender and when they approached him, he attacked them with a machete. The police, in self-defence, shot him in the leg and arrested him.

A policeman, Narayanaswamy, sustained injuries on his left hand and was rushed to a nearby hospital.

The police have arrested two other accused, Raghu and Murali, while the hunt is on for one more.