Shootout outside Bijnor jail: Assailant dies after accidental shot by accomplice; 2 others injured

LUCKNOW Scenes similar to a crime thriller movie were seen outside the Bijnor district jail around 8:30 pm on Friday as a shootout broke out while an inmate was being released on bail.

According to police, gangster Vishal Pandit and his accomplice Raunak opened fire on Rajan, who was being released after 17 days of judicial custody. In the process, Raunak accidentally shot Vishal, killing him on the spot. Two other people — including a jail personnel and a police constable — also sustained injuries in the incident.

Rajan was lodged in jail for attempt to murder since June 13. “As Rajan stepped out of the jail, Vishal Pandit and his accomplice Raunak, who had come to target him, opened indiscriminate firing on the former. Soon after, jail personnel and cops at a nearby jail police outpost turned up to rescue Rajan. While Rajan was running back towards the jail gate, the two assailants were chasing him branding firearms in their hands,” said Bijnor’s Superintendent of Police (SP) Neeraj Kumar Jadaun.

“While Rajan remained unhurt in the attack, Vishal Pandit was hit by the bullet fired by his crime partner Raunak and succumbed during treatment at the district hospital. In the shootout, one jail guard Ranjit Singh and police constable Rajiv Kumar suffered bullet wounds and are undergoing treatment at the hospital,” said another police officer privy to the development.

The SP further said that Rajan and Raunak have been taken into custody and further investigation is underway after registering an FIR of murder and attempt to murder in the case. He added that the deceased, Vishal Pandit, had five criminal cases against him while the two other accused also have a criminal background.

The cop further said that the trio earlier worked for the Rachit gang involved in multiple cases of loot, murder and attempt but Rajan left them and formed a separate gang after Rachit was shot dead in a gang war around two years ago.

“Rajan had enmity with Vishal and Raunak since then. Rajan had even tried to eliminate Harshit Chikara, one of the accomplices of Vishal and Raunak, after which they were in search of an opportunity to target Rajan but were unable to eliminate him as he always used to remain alert and fully armed with weapons,” said the second official.

He also said that Rajan was arrested on June 13 when his name surfaced in firing over a security guard outside Maulana Jauhar College under Kiratpur area on June 1. He said Vishal and Raunak decided to target him outside the jail whenever he came out on bail as he would not have any firearms at that instant. He said the duo was tracking his bail application through their contacts in court and had come to target him outside the jail.