Police said a local resident had informed them about a mob thrashing two assailants. (Express Photo) Police said a local resident had informed them about a mob thrashing two assailants. (Express Photo) An 11-year-old was injured when armed members of the Mukeem Kala gang allegedly fired indiscriminately at the house of a murder witness in a village in Saharanpur district late Monday evening. Later in the day, angry villagers allegedly shot dead one of the assailants, while another was thrashed by the mob before police managed to reach the spot. According to the police, Munawwar, a resident of Turmatkheri village, is a key witness in the murder case of his brother Khalid, who was shot dead on April 21, 2014, allegedly by Mukeem Kala and his aides. Mukeem and four of his aides had been chargesheeted in the case then, local police said. Station House Officer (SHO) of Rampur Maniharan police station SK Rana said, “A group of armed men in two vehicles arrived at Munawwar’s house yesterday (Monday) and started firing indiscriminately at the building in Turmatkheri village. As members of Munawwar’s house raised an alarm, villagers rushed to the spot on hearing the gunshots. When they saw the mob, the assailants tried to escape, but local residents caught two of them who had come on a motorcycle.” Circle Officer (CO) of Nakud area, Yatendra Singh Nagar, said, “One Nahid (11), who is the son of Munawwar’s neighbour Mustakeem, suffered a gunshot injury in his leg. Police are searching for the other assailants who escaped after the firing.” Police said a local resident had informed them about a mob thrashing two assailants. When they reached the spot, they found the two lying in a pool of blood and rushed them to the hospital where doctors declared one of them dead. The deceased was identified as Naushad of Shamli district, while Sufiyan, a resident of Saharanpur, is undergoing treatment at the district hospital, the SHO said. Police did not confirm whether Munawwar was inside his house at the time of the attack. While the SHO and CO did not comment on the nature of the assailants’ injuries, SSP Upendra Kumar Agarwal said Naushad had sustained a bullet injury in his head. In his complaint, Munawwar alleged that he was the target of the assailants. However, Additional Superintendent of Police, Saharanpur (City), Prabhal Pratap Singh said, “The assailants had come to attack Munawwar’s brother Fareed, who had been released from jail in a case of loot and murder two days ago. He had earlier been a member of the Mukeem Kala gang, but had distanced himself following differences.” Start your day the best way with the Express Morning Briefing For all the latest Lucknow News, download Indian Express App

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