CRIMINAL WANTED FOR GIRL’S MURDER KILLED IN ENCOUNTER

GORAKHPUR : A dreaded criminal carrying a reward of Rs 1 lakh was gunned down in an encounter with Gorakhpur police in Gagha region of the district late on Thursday night, police said.

The criminal identified as Vijay Prajapati had been on the run after murdering a minor girl on August 20, they added. However, his accomplice managed to flee during the gunfight.

Confirming the incident, SSP Gorakhpur Vipin Tada said, “During checking, police stopped two bike-borne miscreants who opened fire on cops and tried to flee. In the retaliatory firing by police, one criminal suffered injuries following which he was rushed to Gagha community health centre where he was declared dead.”

“Vijay was a history sheeter and wanted in over a dozen cases of murder, extortion and loot in Dehradun, Barabanki and Gorakhpur,” Tada added. On August 20, Prajapati shot Kajal Singh (15) when she tried to film him as he beat her father, Rajeev Nayan Singh, over some moneyrelated dispute in Jagdishpur Bhaluan village in Gagha area, the SSP said. She later died during treatment in Lucknow.

On the complaint of the girl’s family, police had registered a case of murder under Section 302 of IPC against three people, including Vijay Prajapati, his accomplice Harish and one unidentified person. The police had also booked Vijay’s parents under section 120 B (criminal conspiracy). and arrested his mother. However, Vijay’s father and another accused are still at large.