Indian police shoot dead four men suspected of raping vet

Indian police shot dead four men on Friday who were suspected of raping and killing a 27-year-old veterinarian in the southern city of Hyderabad last week, a senior police official told Reuters.

The men had been in police custody and were shot near the scene of the crime, said N Prakash Reddy, a deputy commissioner of police in Shamshabad, near Hyderabad.

"In the morning, at around 6-6:30, our persons have come to reconstruct the scene of crime and the accused have tried to snatch their weapons, and there was a cross-fire. In this, all the four accused have died. Two policemen have been injured," Reddy said.

Earlier a local police official had put the time of the deaths at around 3:30 am local time. There was no immediate explanation for the discrepancy.

The young woman's rape and murder had triggered rage and horror across the nation after her charred remains found last week near Hyderabad.

Prakash Singh, a retired police officer and a key architect of police reforms, however, believes the incident were "entirely avoidable".

"Abundant caution should be taken when people in custody are being taken to the court or the scene of the crime," BBC Telugu quoted him as saying.

"They should be secured, handcuffed and properly searched before they are taken out. All kinds of things can happen if the police are not careful."

But Singh said it was too early to say if the incident was an extrajudicial killing - known popularly in India as an "encounter killing".

There is no official word from the police, according to NDTV. The four, arrested a day after the crime, had been in custody of the police since Wednesday.

On November 28, the men, all truck-drivers and cleaners, saw the woman park her scooter near a toll-booth, reports NDTV. She left for a dermatology appointment. They allegedly punctured a tyre of the scooter and waited. When she returned, they pretended to help, gang-raped her at a deserted spot, strangled her and burnt her body to destroy evidence, according to the police.

Amid spiralling outrage, the Telangana Law Department had approved a fast-track court to try the case.

A former police officer controversially suggested public anger had left the police with little choice. "Although it's totally unprofessional, but I think this was what was expected. I knew something like this was going to happen," Swaranjit Sen, a former Director General of Police, Andhra Pradesh, is quoted as saying by NDTV.

During the past week, thousands of Indians have protested in several cities following the alleged rape and murder of the woman.

Many Indians seemed to applaud the killings, taking to Twitter to support the police.

"Not sure whether this is right or wrong but feeling very happy..just hope and pray that the ones killed were the real criminals..#hyderabadpolice," wrote one user.

"Quick Justice like this will inculcate fear into the Dirty minds. Our sincere prayers have been answered #hyderabadpolice Hats off," actress Ammu Abhirami posted.