Sajjak Alam, an accused who escaped police custody on Wednesday (January 15, 2025) after firing at two policemen was on Saturday (January 18, 2025) killed in a police encounter at Goalpokher in West Bengal’s Uttar Dinajpur district

“He (Sajjak Alam) was critically injured in an encounter and subsequently succumbed to his injuries at a hospital,” Jawed Shamim, Additional Director General (Law and Order) West Bengal police told The Hindu.

Alam had opened fire on a constable and a sub-inspector when he was being taken to a correctional home from a local court on January 15. Two police personnel had sustained serious injuries in the incident and questions were raised on the role of the police in dealing with criminals.

According to the police there was a “desperate attempt” by the accused to flee to Bangladesh and there was “relentless efforts” by the police to apprehend the accused. The encounter occurred at about 7 a.m. on Saturday at Kichaktala bridge in Shahpur area under Goalpokher police station close to West Bengal Bangladesh border.

The ADG said that after the police confronted the accused and asked him to surrender but he opened fire and the police had to open retaliatory fire. The doctors at the state run health facility that pronounced the accused dead said that he had three bullet injuries.

Mr. Shamim said there that police are trying to ascertain whether the arms recovered from the deceased is the same with which he had fired upon police personnel on January 15.

The encounter comes two days after Director General of West Bengal Police, Rajeev Kumar had said that the police will retaliate if criminals open fire on the police. “ If someone fires at police, we will respond with four times the force,” Mr. Kumar had said on Thursday after meeting the police personnel who had sustained bullet injuries on January 15.

The encounter of the Sajjak Alam assumes significance as there have not been many incidents of encounters between criminals and police in the recent past in West Bengal. The Trinamool Congress leadership had often taken pride in saying that unlike Uttar Pradesh there are no police encounters in West Bengal.

Mr. Shamim said that this was not the first time that a police encounter had taken place in West Bengal. “We are a professional force and not a trigger happy force. There is zero tolerance against criminals,” he added.

The ADG emphasised that West Bengal police is a professional force and part of the judicial system. He said that in four recent cases involving sexual assault and murder of minors the investigation by West Bengal police has resulted in capital punishment for the convicts.