Wanted gangster Anuj Kanaujia was shot dead in a fierce gunfight during a joint operation by the Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force (STF) and Jharkhand Police in Jamshedpur on the intervening night of Saturday and Sunday.
Kanaujia, 42, a resident of Uttar Pradesh’s Mau district, had a criminal record with 24 cases against him. He was known to operate as a contract killer for multiple criminal syndicates, including the gang of jailed gangster-politician Mukhtar Ansari, police officials said.
According to ADGP (Law and Order and STF) Amitabh Yash, “Kanaujia, a key sharpshooter in Mukhtar Ansari’s gang, was neutralized in a heavy exchange of fire between the police and the gangster. The police recovered two pistols—a 9mm and a .32 bore—from him.”
During the encounter, DSP D.K. Shahi sustained injuries. Officials said the STF had tracked Kanaujia and his associates to a house in Jamshedpur, where he refused to surrender. Instead, he allegedly opened fire and hurled bombs at the police team. In retaliation, the police fired back, injuring him. Doctors were called to the scene, who later declared him dead.
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