A deputy superintendent of police investigating illegal stone-mining was killed on Tuesday when a truck he signalled to stop in Haryana's Nuh district drove into him, officials said.
Hours after the officer's death, police said a man allegedly involved in the killing was arrested after being shot at and injured during an encounter with them.
Tauru DSP Surendra Singh had signalled the truck to stop.
As the officer approached the truck to check documents, it ran over him.
His gunman and driver jumped aside to safety.
Singh was rushed to hospital where doctors declared him dead, police said.
The DSP had gone to Pachgaon area near Tauru to conduct raids to stop illegal mining in Aravalli hills when he spotted the truck at 11.50 am.
Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar announced financial assistance of Rs 1 crore and a government job for the DSP's family. The opposition slammed the BJP government over illegal mining in the state.
'In the murder case of Tauru DSP Surendra Singh, orders have been given to take strict action. Not a single culprit will be spared,' Khattar tweeted in Hindi.
Haryana's Director General of Police P K Agrawal visited the spot in Nuh and told reporters that a case of murder has been registered.
'I am told one suspect has been arrested after an encounter with police. The suspect has sustained a bullet injury in his leg and has been nabbed,' he said.
The police later identified the arrested man as Ikkar, the truck's cleaner who was admitted at Nuh's Nalhar Medical College. Initial reports had suggested that the man caught was the driver.
"Other accused will be nabbed soon. All culprits involved in this will be dealt with strictly as per the law. The Haryana police will not spare any culprit," the DGP said.
The DGP said police teams are conducting raids to track down others involved in the killing.
Since 2015, about 50 complaints of illegal mining are registered every year in Nuh, officials said. Often, there are run-ins between police and members of the mining mafia.
DSP Singh was recruited as an assistant sub inspector in Haryana Police in 1994 and was to retire in a few months.
He lived with his family in Kurukshetra and hailed from Sarangpur village in Hisar district.
Haryana Home Minister Anil Vij talked tough.
"All the accused will be caught and not spared even if the police of the entire Nuh district and surrounding districts has to be engaged in this task," he said.
The state government said it has been taking stringent steps to check illegal mining, and set up district-level task forces.
A spokesperson said 138 FIRs have been registered in the state for illegal mining so far in the financial year 2022-23. In Nuh district alone, 23 FIRs were registered and 68 vehicles seized.
Both sand and stone are illegally quarried at places in the state.
Senior Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala demanded a judicial inquiry into the incident and alleged that the mining mafia was enjoying the state government's patronage.
"Does the chief minister not know that a mining mafia is flourishing from Yamunanagar to Nuh and Mewat? Why is the government acting like a mute spectator?" he asked.
Leader of Opposition in Haryana Assembly, Bhupinder Singh Hooda claimed that law and order has collapsed in the state.
"We have been repeatedly saying that common people are feeling unsafe, and recently, many MLAs have also received threats. It appears that the government is non-existent and there is no rule of law," Hooda, a former CM, said.
Aam Aadmi Party leader Arvind Kejriwal also offered condolences.
'Extremely sad. The murder of a police officer in Haryana is the result of the failure of the entire government system in Haryana. How will the public be safe where the police is not safe?' he tweeted.
