At least two suspected opium smugglers escaped after villagers attacked and surrounded a special operations group (SOG) team of the Uttar Pradesh police in Alampur Kot village under the Sirauli police station area in Bareilly district on Wednesday evening.
According to police, the SOG team of the Southern superintendent of police (SP), Anshika Verma, reached Alampur Kot around 5 pm in plainclothes, using an unnumbered white vehicle. Acting on intelligence inputs, four SOG personnel detained two village residents, Sher Singh and Sanjeev, for alleged involvement in opium smuggling and seated them in the vehicle. The duo was reportedly returning home from Ramnagar at the time.
However, moments after the vehicle started moving, Sher Singh began shouting from inside the car, drawing the attention of villagers working in nearby fields. Suspecting foul play, villagers armed with sticks and batons rushed toward the vehicle. Within minutes, around 150 people surrounded the car and attacked the SOG personnel.
Faced with an aggressive crowd, the SOG members abandoned the vehicle and fled on foot. Some personnel managed to reach the Badagaon police outpost under Sirauli police station, while others ran toward the Ramnagar police outpost of Aonla police station. Both detained suspects escaped amid the chaos.
Police teams from the Ramnagar and Badagaon outposts rushed to the spot. It was only after local police explained the situation that villagers realised the vehicle was a government one and that an SOG team had been carrying out an operation. Later, circle officer (CO) Aonla Nitin Kumar arrived at the village with additional police forces from nearby stations to restore order.
{{/usCountry}}Police teams from the Ramnagar and Badagaon outposts rushed to the spot. It was only after local police explained the situation that villagers realised the vehicle was a government one and that an SOG team had been carrying out an operation. Later, circle officer (CO) Aonla Nitin Kumar arrived at the village with additional police forces from nearby stations to restore order.
{{/usCountry}}An inquiry ordered by SP South Anshika Verma revealed that the villagers were unaware of the actual circumstances. Police said the confusion was fuelled by rumours, with some villagers believing that a road accident had occurred, while others suspected a kidnapping.
SP South Anshika Verma said the SOG team was stopped due to rumours and misunderstanding. “Taking advantage of the confusion, Sher Singh and Sanjeev managed to flee. Around 800 grams of opium has been recovered from them. A case is being registered, and efforts are underway to arrest both accused at the earliest,” she said.