Kokrajhar, Nov 27 (PTI) A suspected cattle smuggler was injured in police firing when the person allegedly snatched the pistol of a sub-inspector and tried to flee from custody in Assam's Kokrajhar district on Saturday.

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A police officer said the incident happened at Kakrikhola village when the person was being taken to the area to identify the residence of a co-accused.

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The police chased him and had to fire in his leg to stop him from fleeing, he said.

The accused was arrested some time back in connection with a cattle smuggling case and during interrogation, he had named several people as his associates, the officer said.

The person has been admitted at the FAA Medical College and Hospital at Barpeta and the condition of the patient is stable, the officer said.

Assam has witnessed a series of incidents of police firing on accused who purportedly tried to escape from custody since the present BJP government, led by Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, assumed office on May 10, with at least 26 accused killed and 48 others injured so far.

The Opposition had alleged that the state police have become ‘trigger-happy' but the Chief Minister, in support of the police force, said that law enforcers had ‘full operational liberty' to fight against criminals within the ambit of the law.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)