Dhaka: Former Hazaribagh unit Chhatra League president Arzu was killed in a reported gunfight between his associates and members of Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) in capital’s Hazaribagh area in the early hours of Tuesday.

Arju is the prime accused in the killing of teenage boy Raja, who was tortured to death allegedly by Arju and his associates at Ganaktuli of Hazaribagh on Monday over theft of a cell phone set.

RAB headquarters officials said a team of RAB 2 arrested Arju from Hazaribagh area on Monday midnight.

RAB headquarters director Mufti Mahmood Khan said the RAB team was going to conduct operation along with Arju to arrest his associates in the early hours of Tuesday when the miscreants tried to snatch the BCL leader from the law enforcers’ custody near Mannan Principal’s house at Boraikhal in Hazaribagh area at about 3:30am.

He said as the miscreants fired gunshots, RAB members also retaliated by shooting fire and during exchange of fire Arju received bullet injuries.

However, Arju’s associates fled the scene and RAB team recovered two foreign made pistols and three bullets from there, the media wing director of the RAB headquarters added.

Arju was taken to Dhaka Medical College Hospital where he died at about 5:30am.

16-years-old Raja, son of Babul Hossain of Ganaktuli in Hazaribagh, was reportedly picked up by Arju and his associates from his (Raja’s) house and they took him to Arju’s residence on Monday morning alleging that the teenage boy stole his (Arju’s) mobile phone set.

Family members of Raja alleged that Arju along with his associates beat Raja at his house, leaving the boy injured seriously.

They dropped the boy into his house after providing him with first aid at a local clinic, said Ratna, paternal aunt of the victim.

Raja’s family members took him to the DMCH where doctors pronounced him dead at about 5:00pm.

There were marks of torture all over Raja’s body, said the hospital authorities.