The reactions of some former senior police officials from Maharashtra on the Hyderabad encounter were mixed on Friday, with some justifying the action citing the circumstances, while others condemning it as an undesirable "short-cut." The four men arrested for the rape and murder of a 25-year-old woman veterinarian in Hyderabad last month were killed in an 'exchange of fire' with a police team on Friday morning.

Former Maharashtra Director General of Police D Sivanandhan said this kind of "short-cut" will not help with prevention of crime in the long run. The 1976-batch IPS officer, whose tenure in Mumbai saw several encounters of gangsters, said, "After the encounter, the police may get praised for a short period, but it is not good in the long run." Sivanandhan also said it was better to take measures to prevent crime against women.