Kolkata/Berhampore, Oct. 28 -- Two people, accused in separate cases, have been killed during police encounters in a single day in West Bengal, with the police alleging that both tried to snatch firearms from officers and tried to flee after firing at them during crime reconstruction. While one accused Prahlad Das (23), was arrested on Sunday for the alleged rape and murder of a minor in North 24 Parganas district, the other Samiul Sheikh (40), was arrested in connection with the murder of a BJP worker in Murshidabad. Das's arrest came on Sunday hours after the body of a 17-year-old girl-who went missing on Saturday-was recovered. Police took him to the crime scene in Gaighata at around 2.50 am on Tuesday, officers said, adding that Das attacked the police when they were returning. "Das had confessed to the crime and was taken to the spot for reconstructing the crime. While the team was returning, he snatched the service revolver of a sub-inspector and fired three rounds at the police. Two policemen were injured. Police fired four rounds in self-defence, and Das was injured. He died at a hospital," said a police officer on condition of anonymity. The deceased girl's parents lauded the police personnel for their action. "We are happy with the police action, but we will never get our daughter back," the teenager's mother said. Reacting to the Gaighata incident, senior BJP leader and state rural development minister Dilip Ghosh said, "Nobody is above the law. If someone takes the law into his own hands, this would be the consequence." In the second case, a BJP worker Sujit Mondal had gone missing on August 28. Three people, including Sheikh, were arrested. On September 3, the trio led the police to a spot on the canal's bank from where a limb was recovered. DNA analysis revealed that it belonged to Mondal's body. Police said that on Tuesday, when Sheikh was taken to a spot near Dhuliyan market, he snatched a firearm from one of the policemen and tried to flee. The cops shot him. He was rushed to the hospital where he was declared dead by doctors. Reacting to the killings, Anirban Banerjee, spokesperson of the Mamata-AITC, told the media, "If they (BJP) think that encounter is the solution let them introduce a bill in the assembly and pass it." Meanwhile, state BJP chief Samik Bhattacharya said, "The situation that forced the police to fire at the accused in both cases cannot be termed as encounters," Bhattacharya said. In 2025, Suvendu Adhikari, during his stint as the Leader of the Opposition in the legislative assembly, said, "If the BJP comes to power, these rapists won't be sent to the courts. They will be deposited (arrested) in the morning and spent (encountered) in the afternoon. We will follow the path shown by Yogi Adityanath (Uttar Pradesh CM) and Himanta Biswa Sarma (CM of Assam)," he had said....