Hubballi: The man identified as Ritesh Kumar, a native of Patna, Bihar, was reportedly killed in a police ‘encounter’ in Hubballi on Sunday. The man was accused of murder and attempted rape of a five-year-old girl.
According to sources from the police department, the girl was playing in front of the house where her mother worked as a maid. The man reportedly approached the girl and quickly took her away to a nearby shed where he tried to rape her.
The residents on searching found the body of the girl in the bathroom of the shed. The girl was taken immediately to the hospital where she was declared brought dead.
The accused, on the same day, was caught and handed over to the police. As the news of the incident spread, the residents of local and surrounding areas staged protests demanding the police to encounter him or hand him over to them. The protest started gaining momentum as the day passed. By 6:00 pm, a large number of protesters gathered near the KMC-RI entrance gate blocking the Hubbali-Dharwad road.
Later the news of a police ‘encounter’ was received. The Hubbali-Dharwad Police Commissioner N Shashi Kumar said, “The police were compelled to open fire as the murder accused pelted stones on them and tried to escape. The police shot at his leg in a bid to arrest him and later on his back. He was brought to the KMC-RI in a conscious state however he was declared dead by the doctors.”
The three policemen involving a woman PSI are being treated at a government facility as they were injured in the incident. Following the news of the ‘encounter’, the protest was withdrawn.
