A joint team of the Delhi Police's Special Cell, led by Assistant Commissioner of Police, Attar Singh and UP Police from Meerut chased and caught the criminals - identified as Saddam, 29, Dalip, 19, and Usman, 33 - in Meerut's TP Nagar area, DCP, Special Cell Pramod Kumar Singh Kushwaha, said. All the three were injured in the shootout.

At least 15 rounds of fire were reported from the encounter, said to be the biggest joint operation between the two police forces in a year and a half.

According to Kushwaha, Saddam, a resident of the Bindapur area here, had, along with his associates, freed a sharp-shooter of the Neeraj Bawania gang from the custody of the UP Police in 2014. He had also been absconding long in a case filed against him in the national capital under the stringent MCOCA.

The gang members had also looted an AK-47 and a carbine from the UP Police, and thus it was also on their trail, the DCP added.

All the three injured criminals were injured in a hospital in Meerut.