Bhubaneswar: Questioning the circumstances surrounding the city police firing at a rape accused during his arrest, a human rights defender on Monday moved the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), seeking a judicial inquiry into what he alleged was a “fake, non-fatal encounter” on Saturday. “The NHRC has received my complaint and assigned diary number 23203/IN/2026,” petitioner Himansu Sekhar Nayak said.Sreedhar Panda alias Santosh (24), accused of raping an IT engineer at her home after allegedly entering the premises with an intention to steal on Sept 30, was shot in his leg and injured after he allegedly attempted to stab police personnel with a screwdriver during his arrest on Oct 3.“We do not want to obstruct or prejudice the investigation into the alleged sexual assault. The allegations against the accused must be investigated strictly in accordance with the law. However, the existence of a criminal allegation cannot authorise police personnel to use unlawful, and excessive force, nor can it justify fabrication or manipulation of an encounter narrative,” Nayak said in his petition.He urged the NHRC to order an independent forensic and ballistic examination to determine whether the physical and medical evidence was consistent with the police version of the firing. He also sought an appropriate magisterial or judicial inquiry into the incident.Police, however, denied any manipulation in the operation. “Our personnel fired two rounds at the accused in self-defence,” a senior police officer said.