Seven criminals were arrested in encounters with different police teams in Sambhal, Bareilly and Shamli districts on Sunday.
Three policemen and three criminals sustained injuries in the exchange of fire during the encounters.
In Sambhal, a police team was conducting checking when two miscreants were seen passing near the picket point on Saturday night. They were asked to stop but they ignored police warning and opened fire on the cops on being given a chase. The police also returned the fire In the exchange of fire, two policemen, identified as sub-inspector laek Ahmad and constable Udit Rathi, were hit by bullets. The criminals, identified as Prem and Prakash, both of Sambhal, also sustained injuries. They were rushed to hospital later.
Police recovered a country-made pistol, five live cartridge and five shells from the arrested persons.
Police said both the criminals were wanted in several cases and carried reward of Rs 25,000 each.
Police said a team was keeping a tab on them for a long time and an informer had tipped off about their movement via Arthur crossing under Dhanari police station area on Saturday.
The police said on the information the police laid a trap and challenged the miscreants to surrender but they opened fire on the team.
In Bareilly, a team from Kotwali police was tipped-off about a gang of bootleggers that was smuggling liquor by trucks.
The police developed the information and laid a trap near Bareilly Club under Kotwali police station area and was a truck coming that way.
After the informer identified the truck, the police team asked the driver to stop the truck but the persons sitting in the truck opened fire on the police team. However, the cops managed to nab the miscreants.
Those arrested were identified as Sikander Singh and Bittu Singh of Punjab. The cops recovered 750 cartons of Indian Made Foreign liquor (IMFl) worth Rs 30 lakh from them.
The team also recovered a country-made pistol and live cartridges form the arrested persons.
In Shamli, a team of Kandhala police station nabbed three car-borne miscreants after an encounter on Saturday night.
The miscreants were passing near the railway crossing in Kandhala when they were asked to stop for checking.
However, the miscreants opened fire on the police team, injuring constable Gaurav Rathi.
The police also returned the fire in which a miscreant, Ankit aka Kala Pandit of Sonipat in Haryana, was injured.
Ankit’s aides, identified as Amit Kashyap and Kapil Kashyap, surrendered before the police. Police said the injured constable and miscreant were admitted to a hospital.
Police recovered three country-made pistols and six live cartridges from the miscreants.