On the run after allegedly murdering a 34-year-old truck driver, two gangsters were chased down and shot at by the police on Sunday. 

Praveen (24) and Abhi (26), with a long history of serious crimes, are accused of hacking Mahesh Kumar to death in northern Bengaluru on the night of September 6.

They and some of their associates tailed him as he rode on a scooter. They waylaid him at Hegganahalli Cross, Sunkadakatte, and hacked him to death before fleeing from the spot, the police said. 

Kumar and his elder brother were charged with murdering two gangsters named Suri and Babu following a fight at a wedding in Ramanagara in 2014. Kumar got bail only last year and started driving a Canter in Rajagopala Nagar. Praveen and Abhi owed their allegiance to Suri and had vowed to avenge his murder by eliminating Kumar. 

Investigating the murder, the Kamakshipalya police arrested Sathish, an associate of Praveen and Abhi. They received a tip-off that Praveen and Abhi were spotted around Pete Channappa Industrial Estate in Kamakshipalya.

When the police tried to catch them early on Sunday, they allegedly attacked them with knives in a bid to escape. Police constables Vasanth Kumar, Satish and sub-inspector Andani Gowda sustained injuries in the attack. 

The police then opened fire in the air to warn them, but the men attacked the officers again. The police then fired them in the leg in self-defence and caught hold of them. They are now hunting for others involved in Kumar’s murder.