Bereaved father of sub inspector Jagadish, in spite of his sudden grief, had the presence of mind to fulfil his son’s wish that his eyes should be donatedA month of meticulous planning to nab two criminals who habitually committed burglaries, robberies and vehicle thefts ended in tragedy on Friday at 12.30 pm when 34-year-old sub-inspector of police of Doddaballapur town police station S Jagadish was stabbed to death by the two while he was chasing them. The accused duo – Harish Babu alias Krishnappa, 45, and ‘Gonne’ Madhu, 21, both natives of Shivamogga – managed to escape, but not before stabbing a 35-year-old constable Venkateshmurthy who jumped in to save Jagadish. Venkateshmurthy is said to be in a critical state.Jagadish and his team had almost nabbed Krishnappa and Madhu at a two-wheeler showroom through a well-laid trap; but the duo smelt a rat and was trying to escape when a never-say-die Jagadish gave them chase. That is when he was stabbed, first by 8Krishnappa, and then by 8Madhu who allegedly stabbed Jagadish five times on the side of his torso.Jagadish and his team of police constables were in mufti and had laid a well-laid-out trap to nab Krishnappa and Madhu, who are said to be cardholders of Modus Operandi Bureau (MOB) which maintains records of habitual criminals. The sub-inspector had relentlessly tracked the two for some time. In fact, his tracking had been so systematic that he knew their whereabouts and their plans through a well-established network. He had been tracking Krishnappa’s and Madhu’s mobile numbers for weeks and was keeping track of their movements by following the mobile tower ranges through which each of the duo passed.The police said that just a few days ago, Jagadish had received information that Krishnappa and Madhu had booked a Honda Dio bike on October 9 at the Turbo Honda showroom in Nelamangala town. Jagadish convinced the showroom personnel to call the two to Turbo Honda showroom telling them that the bike documents had arrived and that they should come and collect them.The criminals fell for it. They arrived at the showroom on Friday morning, oblivious of the fact that Jagadish was already sitting inside with a couple of constables in plainclothes and two others posted outside, waiting for Krishnappa and Madhu to walk into the trap.Unfortunately, Krishnappa and Madhu simultaneously got suspicious and dashed out of the showroom, which took Jagadish and his men by surprise. The element of surprise was lost, but the sub-inspector and the four constables launched themselves in hot pursuit of Krishnappa and Madhu.One of the constables who was part of the mission, told Bangalore Mirror, “They started running towards the back of the showroom building which is a semi-residential area. Jagadish chased both of them drawing his pistol. But the two suddenly started running in different directions. Jagadish and constable Venkatesh continued chasing Krishnappa while the others went after Madhu. That was when Jagadish caught Krishnappa…but he did not expect the latter to suddenly draw his gagger and stab him…”The eye-witnesses said when Jagadish was stabbed he slipped and fell. That was when Madhu came rushing in with his dagger and stabbed Jagadish five times in the left side of his chest and abdomen. Seeing his superior being attacked constable Venkatesh jumped in between Madhu and Jagadish when he received stab wounds in his back.Krishnappa and Madhu then made good their escape, leaving the remaining policemen – constables Shashidhar, Gangadhar and Chandrashekar – rushing in to try and help Jagadish and Venkatesh.Gangadhar who was first on the scene following Venkateshmurthy watched Madhu and Krishnappa sitting astride Jagadish and stabbing him continuously. Watching the scene, a horrified 35-year-old constable Gangadhar fainted. They were shifted to a hospital where doctors confirmed that Jagadish had died on the spot; Venkatesh was moved to an ICU and remains in a critical condition. Gangadhar was given intravenous saline drips to revive him from the shock.Additional director general of police (Law & order) Alok Mohan and central range inspector general of police Arun Chakravarti rushed to the spot with some other senior officers.“Jagadish had a service revolver with him and could have shot at them to stop them from fleeing, but he wanted to catch them alive and bust the criminal activities they are involved in” Mohan said. Protests continued till late night in Doddaballapur. Final rites will be held in Mallapur on Saturday.Jagadish is a popular man in Doddaballapur, and there was a spontaneous bandh to mourn his death. Owners of shops and business establishments joined in to express their solidarity. Tyres were burnt at various parts and marches carried out , demanding the arrest of the culprits. Traffic came to a standstill for sometime.People who knew Jagadish say he was a fearless, straightforward and honest officer. T Ramanna, brother of Doddaballaur MLA T Venkataramanaiah, said Jagadish used to put lot of effort to check illegal activities in the city, but was praised for being humane. Serving as a constable prior to becoming a Sub-Inspector could be the reason for this human touch, he said. “For over two years, I haven’t heard a single person complaining against him on his functioning. Illegal activities like gambling and matka were a menace here, and of late they have come down drastically and Jagadish played an important role. He was known for his fearless raids,” he said.PSI Puttegowda, Jagadish’s batchmate, said, “I first met Jagadish during our training to become sub-inspectors over five years ago. He led a hard life and came from a very poor background, and was always grounded and humble. He was a very good man – dedicated in his professional life; as well as a loving husband and father to his wife and children.”We had worked together during Ganesh festival last year. Four civil defence teams from city were given to Doddaballapur and my team was with Jagadish anna. The way he handled the crowds was impressive. He was very polite. Usually, Ganesha processions are chaotic and sometimes violent. But he managed it very well, for over a month. When things got heated between the authorities and the local people, he used to intervene and cool down matters. He never bossed anyone. He jotted down every detail in the notes he prepared for the day. He was very caring and sensitive. He would send the women volunteers among us at 6.30 in the evening, saying safety was important. A couple of months ago, we got a rescue call about a buffalo stuck on railway tracks after an accident in Doddaballapur. Fire force officials would have taken time to reach the spot. I called him, and he rushed his constables to the place and coordinated with railway officials. The buffalo was rescued.— Nagendra M, a 24-year-old civil defence volunteer, who used to address Jagadish as anna (brother), recalled how meticulous, organised and polite the officer was.Lauding Jagadish’s brave act, Director General & Inspector General (DG&IG) of police Om Prakash said “We are proud of him and salute him for his extraordinary courage and commitment to the department!”Honouring his brave act, Om Prakash said the department would recommend his name for gallantry award posthumously and the family would get the entire salary of Jagadish till his deemed retirement, he said.Apart from this, the family would also get an ex gratia of Rs 50 lakh along with other benefits. The family member would get a suitable government job based on the qualification and the state government would bear the educational expenses of his two daughters, aged 3 years and nine months.Additional Commissioner of Police (West) Pratap Reddy tweeted while paying his respects: “Sub Inspector Jagadish (has) shown great courage & laid down his life in the line of duty. RIP.”Jagadish had joined the police in 2005 as a police constable. Always striving to improve, Jagadish applied for SI post. A 2009 batch sub-inspector of police, he hailed from Mallapura in Magadi taluk in Ramanagara district. He is survived by his wife Ramya, who he married in 2010 and two daughters, aged 3 years and nine months, respectively.Mallikarjun Bande , police sub-inspector in Bazaar police station, Gulbarga, was shot on the head from point-blank range during the gunfight between Gulbarga police and Munna Darbar, a wanted rowdy sheeter and notorious underworld sharpshooter.45-year-old Shivashankar, head constable attached to the Koramangala police station, fell to his death from the roof of a women’s hostel in Koramangala while chasing thieves.Director General & Inspector General (DG&IG) of police Om Prakash said that special teams has been formed to nab the duo who are on the run. “I have directed the Jurisdictional Deputy Superintendent of police to handle the case and investigate in detail,” Om Prakash said.“We have formed five different teams to nab the accused. We already have some leads in this case and we hope to nab these two very soon,” Central Range Inspector General of Police Arun Chakravarti said. “After a spate of theft cases were reported in Doddaballapur in September third week, Jagadish had started investigating the cases and had found that these two accused were involved. After that he had started investigating and was tracking the two accused to lay a trap to nab them.”The police feel that the accused could not have moved far from where they killed Jagadish. The two were known to be residing at two places on the outskirts of Bengaluru – one at Chikkabidarikallu and Madhenahalli, both on Tumkur Road. The whole Bangalore Rural district police are hunting the duo, and are being duly helped by the Bangalore city police as they are known to be familiar with the city too.