Hyderabad: The Special Investigation Team
(SIT) of city police on Saturday took over the probe into the
killing of a police constable by three unidentified assailants
even as Viqaruddin, said to be a member of the banned SIMI,
was emerging as the key suspect.
The case was transferred from Hussaini Alam police
station. The incident took place last evening at Shah-Ali
Banda area in the old city of Hyderabad, police said.
"The case was today handed over to SIT for a thorough
investigation into the death of police constable U Ramesh," a
senior police officer told agency.
Police officials, meanwhile, said some eyewitnesses
have identified one of the assailants as Viqaruddin, said to
be a member of the banned Students Islamic Movement of India
(SIMI), going by his photo.
Viqaruddin, allegedly having links with terror outfits
like HUJI, is wanted in connection two attacks on policemen on
December 3, 2008 and May 18, 2009.
The body of Ramesh was shifted from Osmania General
Hospital (OGS) here to his native Madanapalli in Chittor
district late last night after an autopsy.
Three bullets were fired at Ramesh and one bullet was
recovered from his chest during autopsy.
It was for the third time in the last 17 months that
suspected terrorist elements attacked policemen on duty in
Hyderabad city. Two persons were killed and as many injured in
these incidents.
Alleged ISI operative Viqaruddin opened fire on the
sleuths of counter-intelligence cell at IS Sadan in December
2008 injuring a head constable, according to police. He was
also allegedly involved in the shootout at Falaknuma in which
a home guard died and a police constable was injured on May 18
last year, the second anniversary of Mecca Masjid blast.
Viqaruddin, against whom the Special Investigation Team
of the city police has already registered a case, is a
resident of Old Malakpet area here and had joined
Darsgah-e-Jihad-o-Shahadat (DJS), a suspected front of SIMI.
Police say he is a strong follower of jihadi ideology
and has now emerged as a major challenge for them.
Police Commissioner A K Khan had earlier this month
claimed that they had obtained clear leads on Viqaruddin and
hoped to nab him soon. The latest incident comes four days
ahead of the third anniversary of Mecca Masjid blast in which
five persons were killed.
"We are preparing the sketches of suspects on the
information provided by Shanta Rao (the policeman) and other
eye-witnesses," another police officer said, adding they had
picked up at least 15 suspects as part of the probe.
Meanwhile, the last rites of Ramesh were conducted at his
native Guttavaripalli village in Chittoor district at around 4
pm with full state honours.
Ramesh hailed from Madanapalle in Chittoor district and
his wife Santakumari is posted as a constable in the Punganur
police station in the same district.
The constable was deputed to Hyderabad for security
duties as part of the APSP-XI Battalion unit.
A little known city-based outfit Tehrik-e-Galiba Islami
has claimed responsibility for the attack and has warned of
more "revenge attacks" if perpetrators of the Mecca Masjid
firing were not brought to the book.
The same outfit had left behind a pamphlet written in
Urdu after suspected terrorists opened fire on a police picket
near Falaknuma on May 18 last year killing a home guard and
injuring a constable.
PTI
