Gamblers fleeing cops drown in Tapi | India News
Mistaking a police team rushing in to nab a wanted criminal for a raid on their gambling activity, two of six gamblers jumped into Tapi River in Surat in a bid to escape but drowned on Tuesday.
Unaware of the gambling, cops were raiding the area in Iqbalnagar to apprehend one Rashid Khan, who was later nabbed.
A cop said, “Our surveillance team got a tip-off about Rashid Khan’s presence in Iqbalnagar. As our team reached the riverbank, we noticed commotion, with people running helter-skelter. While moving towards the noise, we spotted two men struggling in the river.”
Realising that the men were stuck in the river’s thick mud, cops deployed fishermen and swimmers for rescue. “The river was at high tide and filled with heavy silt. Swimmers somehow managed to pull Md Safeda (52) and Md Amin Hotelwala (50) out. Emergency medical teams arrived promptly and rushed them to the hospital, where they were declared dead,” the police officer added.
