Moga, June 25
The Chandigarh Police shot dead a Moga resident and his gunman on the outskirts of Moga this evening.

A team of the Crime Branch of the Chandigarh Police, led by inspector Ranjodh Singh, was in Moga to arrest Sukhdev Singh, a robbery accused. When the policemen tried to arrest him, Sukhdev's gunman allegedly opened fire at them.

The police retaliated and the gun battle lasted for more than 20 minutes. Sukhdev and his gunman died on the spot. Two policemen — sub-inspector Rajdip Singh and head constable Surinder Kumar - were injured. Eyewitnesses said more than 50 rounds of shots were fired from both sides.

Confirming the incident, Chandigarh SSP Sukhchain Singh Gill said the policemen had gone to Moga to arrest two robbery accused, including Sukhdev Singh. A case was registered against Sukhdev and his accomplice at the Sector 22 police station in Chandigarh.

The Moga police are tightlipped over the incident. The bodies were taken to the Moga district hospital and the injured were rushed to a hospital in Ludhiana.

One Harpinder Singh had filed a complaint against Sukhdev Singh and his accomplice Rinku alleging that they barged into his room at a guesthouse in Sector 22, Chandigarh, at 2 am on June 22 and had assaulted him.

They were reportedly asked by two NRIs who wanted to avenge a two-year-old enmity with Harpinder. Sukhdev and Rinku thrashed Harpinder and sent the video footage to the NRIs based in the US.

The Chandigarh Police was also learnt to have detained two youths from near the site of the encounter. They were taken to the city police station-1 and handed over to the local police.