Mining mafia shoot at Dholpur constable, flee

JAIPUR/ALWAR: A Dholpur police constable was shot in the shoulder on Sunday, allegedly by mining mafia , when he tried to stop a vehicle illegally transporting sand and gravel. The constable was rushed to the hospital. This is the second incident in a matter of few days. Prior to this, a government official was allegedly attacked by mining mafia.

The incident happened on early Sunday morning, when a team of police officials was chasing a tractor allegedly carrying gravel from Chambal river. One of the individuals on the tractor fired at the cops, who also shot back. In the ensuing firing, constable Gopal Singh was hit in the shoulder and was taken to the hospital where he was operated on. The cops also fired at the tractor tyre, but the accused managed to flee.

Rajinder Kumar Verma, additional SP, Dholpur told TOI, “The accused were running from the cops and fired at them. Constable Gopal Singh was injured during the firing but is now in a stable condition after the surgery.”

This is not the first time that mining mafia has attacked government officials in Rajasthan. An Indian Forest Service (IFS) officer was allegedly attacked by mining mafia in Karauli’s Hindaun forest area on Thursday.

The officer, Shravan Kumar Reddy, along with his staff was attacked in the forest area, when they went there for an inspection and found few individuals who were illegally transporting stones from there. The area where the said attack occurred is also part of the extended Aravali Ranges, where illegal mining was also pointed out by the country’s top court.

“We are doing everything to catch the accused in this particular case. The mining mafia also finds new routes to transport the gravel and sand illegally from Chambal river, which is a big stretch, so it is a continuous process to catch them,” added Verma.

A case under IPC Sections 332 (voluntarily causing hurt to deter public servant from his duty) and 307 (attempt to murder) as well as, under the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, has been registered.