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Assam: Man shot dead after attacking neighbours, cop with machete
Ranjit Pandav, resident of the Bar Diroi tea garden line area, was chasing his wife with a machete over a domestic dispute when his neighbours tried to intervene
Silchar: A 46-year-old man was shot dead by police after he allegedly attacked two neighbours and a police personnel with a machete in Assam’s Sivasagar district on Tuesday night, police said.
Locals said the deceased, Ranjit Pandav, a resident of the Bar Diroi tea garden line area, was chasing his wife with a machete and threatening to attack her over a domestic dispute when his neighbours tried to intervene.
Ranjit attacked his neighbours —Martin Pandav and his wife Geeta Pandav, both in their forties— around 8 pm, Co-District Superintendent of Police (CDSP), Gossaigaon, Hiren Kumar Deka said.
Locals said that the neighbouring couple had gone to Ranjit’s house to calm the situation after hearing screams. “However, Ranjit turned on them and attacked them with the machete, leaving both injured,” locals said.
CDSP Deka said, “The locals informed us about the incident around 9 pm and said that Ranjit was in an intoxicated state. After injuring Martin and his wife, Ranjit kept chasing others, which created havoc in the locality.”
Villagers then alerted the police, following which a team from the Demow police station reached the spot.
The CDSP said that when the police team arrived, Ranjit initially tried to attack them but later went back to his room.
“He switched off the lights in his room and attacked a police personnel who tried to enter,” Deka said.
“We issued several warnings and asked him to surrender, but he did not comply. We fired two blank rounds before finally firing at him to save our officer,” Deka added.
Police took Ranjit to Assam Medical College and Hospital (AMCH) in Dibrugarh, where doctors declared him dead, Deka said, adding that Ranjit’s body was sent for postmortem.
The injured are in critical condition, and Martin is admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) of AMCH.
Locals informed police that Ranjit, who reportedly had a history of domestic violence, is survived by his wife and five children, who had recently moved to a relative’s house.
“We are in contact with his family members and their statements will be recorded as per procedure,” an officer said.
