By IANS
Lucknow : A dreaded gang of brigands ambushed and killed six Uttar Pradesh policemen late Sunday night close to the Uttar Pradesh-Madhya Pradesh border, barely 12 hours after commandos shot down India's "most wanted" bandit Dadua in the same area, officials said Monday.
"This was a retaliatory move by Thokia, another notorious bandit who carries a reward of Rs.300,000 on his head, against whom we were carrying out a simultaneous operation in which our men had gunned down one of his gang members Sunday," Additional Director General of Police (Law and Order) Brij Lal told IANS.
"The commando team was ambushed when they were returning to their camp after a prolonged encounter with the Thokia gang in the Ansuiya forests of Chitrakoot district along the Uttar Pradesh-Madhya Pradesh border," Lal said.
The Special Task Force (STF) team was involved in an encounter with the Thokia gang Sunday evening during which one member of the gang was killed. However, Thokia managed to escape and the operation had to be put off due to darkness. The commandos were ambushed on their way back from the site of the operation.
"Apparently, the bandits dug up parts of the road at a strategic curve in the hilly tract, compelling the commandos to halt at a point where one of the two jeeps got stuck. As soon as they stepped out of their vehicles, they were hit by a spray of bullets from a nearby hillock where Thokia and his men had positioned themselves," Lal added.
Earlier Sunday, policemen had shot dead India's most wanted bandit Dadua, who carried a cash reward of half a million rupees on his head.
Ten members of his gang were also killed in the fierce gun battle that took place barely 100 km from the anti-Thokia operation.
Thokia was Dadua's protégé but he fell out with the dreaded bandit and formed his own gang. Sunday evening's retaliatory killing was also seen as part of his bid to establish himself as the new undisputed 'bandit king' of the region.