By IANS
Vadodara (Gujarat) : The Gujarat police have sounded state-wide alert for the 10 under-trials who escaped after assaulting a police escort team Wednesday afternoon.
The incident took place on the Vadodara-Ahmedabad Express Highway over the Mahisagar bridge, 30 km from here, when the ten were being escorted back to Sabarmati jail in Ahmedabad from a court hearing here, Vadodara Superintendent of Police Amit Vishwakarma told IANS Thursday.
According to the police, a group of eight policemen from Ahmedabad headquarters – one assistant sub-inspector, two head constables and five constables – and a home guard were escorting the 11 accused back to jail when four of them sought to relieve themselves.
Four policemen too got down from the van and escorted the four to the roadside. The under-trials inside the van pounced upon the four constables with their handcuffs.
Though the police opened fire at the escaping convicts, 10 of them managed to flee. One was hurt and arrested. Five policemen were also injured in the scuffle. They have been shifted to the SSG Hospital, Vishwakarma said.
A state-wide alert has been sounded and the hunt is on for the under-trials who are in early twenties, he added.
The five injured policemen are head constables Ramsinh Jawansinh, Ramesh Somabhai, Chimanbhai, Takhaji Baria and home guard Mahendrasinh Dashrath.
The gang, which was arrested by the Panchmahals police last year, is known to be involved in more than 10 cases of looting in the region, including a jewellery heist Nov 20, 2007.