Police vehicle kills CRPF personnel

Photo courtesy: Facebook- Bibek Sah

HT, 19 Dec 2016, DARJEELING: Tension gripped Raja Tea Estate and surrounding areas on National Highway 31 in Jalpaiguri district over the death of a CRPF personnel in a hit-and-run case involving a police vehicle.

Locals staged blockades on the National Highway 31 connecting Siliguri to Assam, passing through Jalpaiguri. Till the time of the filing of this report blockades continued till late at night resulting in serpentine traffic jams on the highway.

At around 3.30 pm, Sambhu Triki, the CRPF personnel, was returning home along with his wife Bina from the Malbazar Hospital on a scooter. In front of Raja Tea Estate, a Tata Sumo rammed into the scooter killing the 34-year-old Sambhu on the spot and critically injuring his wife.

The Sumo which was a police vehicle of the Malbazar thana then rammed into two cycles and a bike. Locals gave the Sumo a chase and managed to intercept it. The driver of the killer vehicle, Ganesh Lohar, a police driver, was handed over to the police.

Locals then staged a blockade on the spot. With the situation turning tense police contingents from Mal and Meteli police stations rushed to the spot. However, they did not go into any confrontation with the agitators.

“The CRPF personnel died on the spot and his wife is critically injured. We have arrested Lohar. The situation is tense but under control. We are keeping a close watch,” said Amitava Maity, superintendent of police, Jalpaiguri.

With the blockade continuing a mammoth traffic jam ensued with both Siliguri-bound vehicles and vehicles travelling to Dooars from Siliguri caught in the traffic snarl.