PRAYAGRAJ, Oct. 2 -- A smack smuggler was injured and caught by police during an encounter near Karaudi Ghat in Pratapgarh district on Tuesday night, said officials. The accused, identified as Prem Kumar alias Hitesh from Devkali, was travelling from Antu on a motorcycle when the incident took place. Police recovered 278 grams of smack and a .315 bore pistol from him. He was shot in the leg during the exchange of fire and was taken to the Medical College hospital for treatment. According to additional superintendent of police (East) Shailendra Lal, Prem Kumar is a known criminal and has three cases against him, including robbery and gangster charges. He will be sent to jail once he is discharged from hospital. SHO of Shahar Kotwali police station Neeraj Yadav, along with SI Ankit Srivastava, Prashant Dubey, Pushpraj Singh, Akhilesh Pratap Singh, and SWAT team led by Amit Chaurasia, were waiting near Karaudi Ghat. They had information that someone was bringing illegal weapons from Antu. When police tried to stop the biker, he opened fire on them. Police fired back, injuring him in the right leg. The villages of Baijalpur and Adamapur near Antu have been hotspots for smack sales for the past two years. Residents have protested at the superintendent of police's office, asking for stronger action. Recently, a video went viral showing a constable smoking smack inside his home. This led to heavy police presence and searches in the village with support from the Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC). However, the constable has not been identified yet. Just a day before the encounter, Lilapur police arrested Rajesh alias Rohit Singh from Harichandpur in Rae Bareli. He was found with 116 grams of smack and 25 grams of MD, worth around Rs.25 lakh. His partner, Anil Singh from Baizalpur, managed to escape. Rajesh told police that Anil Singh is the main supplier of both smack and MD....