Daijiworld Media Network - Anand

Anand, Jul 20: A man accused of kidnapping and murdering a four-and-a-half-year-old girl was killed in a police encounter in Gujarat's Anand district after he allegedly attacked police personnel with a concealed knife while attempting to escape from custody, officials said on Monday.

Two policemen were injured in the incident on Sunday night. The accused, identified as Suresh Parmar, who was in his late 20s, was shot by police in self-defence and later succumbed to his injuries during treatment, Inspector General of Police, Ahmedabad Range, Raghavendra Vatsa said.

"A person accused of kidnapping and killing a minor girl has been killed in an encounter as he tried to escape after attacking police with a concealed knife on Sunday night. Two policemen received injuries in the knife attack," Vatsa told reporters.

According to police, the victim, the daughter of migrant labourers, was sleeping with her parents on a platform at Vasad railway station on Saturday night when she was abducted at around 9.15 pm. Her body was found on the railway tracks early on Sunday.

CCTV footage from the railway station allegedly showed Parmar taking the child away. Following the incident, multiple teams from the Railway Police, Anand district police, the Local Crime Branch (LCB), the Special Operations Group (SOG) and Vasad police launched a search operation.

Parmar, a resident of Borsad town in Anand district, was arrested by Borsad Rural Police late on Sunday evening and handed over to the Local Crime Branch for further investigation.

Police said that while LCB personnel were escorting Parmar to Anand town on Sunday night, he asked them to stop the vehicle, claiming he wanted to vomit. After the vehicle halted, he allegedly pulled out a concealed knife and attacked two policemen in an attempt to escape, injuring both of them.

Officials said a police sub-inspector repeatedly asked Parmar to surrender, but he allegedly continued the attack, forcing officers to open fire in self-defence. Parmar sustained a bullet injury and was shifted to a hospital in Karamsad, where he died in the early hours of Monday.

Police said the case began with the abduction and murder of the minor girl in Vasad and ended with the accused being arrested, allegedly attempting to escape by attacking police personnel, and being fatally shot in self-defence. Further investigation is underway.