KATHMANDU: A motorbike-borne armed gang opened fire on a police team chasing after it, in Itahari of Sunsari district in eastern Nepal on Monday.

The police in civvies, in retaliation, opened the fire and injured three suspects.

Police also seized two loaded pistols with "Made in USA" marks, two home-made pistols, a knife and some illegal drugs from the suspects.

The injured are Shrawan Sardar (29) from Tankisinuwari-7 of Morang district, Satan Paswan (27) from Nocha-2 of Morang and Shubhalal Sardar (42) from Itahari-13 of Sunsari.

Police said they opened the fire after the suspected drug smugglers shot at them and ran away. The injured have received injuries in knees and legs and are undergoing treatment at a Dharan-based health facility in the district.

Acting on a tip-off, police were following the bike (Ko 22 Pa 6363).

Further investigation is underway.