The girls were found hanging from a branch of a tree near their residence on June 11 (File)
An accused in the gruesome rape and murder of two underage girls in the Kokrajhar district of Assam's Bodoland Territorial Region has been hospitalised after the police shot and injured him when he tried to escape from their custody, officials said.
The incident took place late last night when the accused - 22-year-old Farijul Rahman - was taken to a jungle where he had claimed to have hidden a mobile phone of another accused in the case. The police had taken him to the area for a search operation to retrieve the phone, Kokrajhar Superintendent of Police Prateek Vijay Kumar said.
"But in reality, he had hidden a sharp weapon at the spot and attacked the police with it. He attempted to cut the rope he was tied to with the weapon and escape when the police fired two rounds. One bullet hit his right leg," an official said, adding that a Constable has also sustained injuries in the incident.
Additional Director General of Police (law and order) GP Singh today said, "One of the accused tried to escape during the search operation and the police had to fire to prevent him from escaping. He has been admitted to Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed Medical College and Hospital in Barpeta with injuries. However, there is no life risk."
Farijul Rahman is among the seven arrested in connection with the rape and murder of the two minor girls from the same family. The girls were found hanging side by side from a branch of a tree near their residence on June 11. The seven accused were arrested on June 15.
The case had come into major attention after Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, who also holds the Home portfolio, visited the spot and asked the police to fast track the investigation.