MURDER MOST FOUL: Residents and policemen gather at the spot of the firing near the Voulga Hotel at Shah Ali Banda, in Old City on Friday.
Hyderabad: The city was put on high alert after two motorcycle-borne youths shot dead a police constable in the Shah Ali Banda area of Old City on Friday evening. The assailants managed to flee the spot. The victim was identified as U Ramesh, 37, attached with the 11th battalion of AP Special Police. DGP R R Girish Kumar said Viqar Ahmed, a wanted militant, is the prime suspect.According to eyewitnesses, the incident happened a little after 4 pm at the police check-post near Hotel Voulga. “Due
to the intense heat, the constables on duty had taken shelter under a tree on the pavement a few metres away from the checkpost when two persons on a motor-bike went up to them and fired two rounds. We saw one cop taking cover by running away from the assailants towards Kilwat side, but he collapsed on the road. In the melee, the attackers managed to flee,” said Hafiz, who was standing outside the hotel.
Ramesh, the cop who collapsed on the road, was rushed to Osmania General Hospital (OGH) where he was declared brought dead. “He had two bullet injuries, one in the chest and the other in the back”, the duty resident medical officer at OGH said. Ramesh was a native of Madanapalle in Chittoor district and his wife Shanta is also a police constable posted at Punganur police station in Chittoor. The couple have a five-year-old daughter.
The eyewitnesses said the motor-cycle rider had a helmet on while the shooter who was pillion riding was masked. The police have launched a manhunt for Viqar Ahmed, whose hand is also suspected in the attack in Santoshnagar area in December 2008 in which two cops were injured. The police said three rounds were fired, though doctors at OGH confirmed two bullet wounds. A blood-spattered CD that was recovered from the spot contained the name of Tahreek Ghalba-e-Islam, a little-known organisation which had claimed responsibility for the killing of one home guard in Falaknuma on May 18, 2009, the second anniversary of the Mecca Masjid blast. It also claimed the role of one Faziuddin Aamir, besides Tahreek, a police officer said. Last time, the assailants had left a note claiming the involvement of Tahreek. Unarmed cops are sitting ducks during attack
Hyderabad: Forensic examination of the two shells recovered from the spot where motorcycleborne youth shot dead a police constable in Shah Ali Banda on Friday revealed that the weapon was a 7.65mm pistol.
According to the police, at least six policemen besides a few home guards were posted at the police check-post where the incident took place. “It falls under the Hussani Alam police station limits. At the time of the strike, Ramesh, home guard Shanta Rao and two other cops were at the site. Shanta Rao was badly shaken by the incident,” police sources said.
The incident has raised many uncomfortable questions for the police. First, the policemen on duty were unarmed. “What kind of retaliatory action can the cops take against such attackers if they do not have any firearms with them,” asked a senior police official.
Secondly, the policemen on duty appeared to be casual and relaxed when they were expected to be on alert.
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