An assistant commissioner of police (ACP), Sandeep Singh, 34, and his gunman, Paramjot Singh, 35, were killed when their sports utility vehicle collided with another SUV near Samrala in Ludhiana district late on Friday night.

The collision occurred around midnight when one side of the four-lane Ludhiana-Chandigarh highway was blocked by protesting farmers. There was no sign indicating that the stretch had turned into a two-way stretch due to the 24×7 blockade near Mushkabad village.

Sandeep Singh, who was posted as ACP (East) in the Ludhiana police commissionerate, was returning from Chandigarh with his gunman and driver Gurpreet Singh in the Toyota Fortuner.

Soon after the two bodies were retrieved and the driver was rescued, the SUV caught fire.

The driver was rushed to Dayanand Medical College and Hospital in Ludhiana with multiple injuries. His condition is stable.

Sub inspector Rao Varinder Singh, the station house officer at Samrala, said: “Eye-witnesses informed the police and called the fire brigade.”

He said a search is on for the absconding driver and occupants of the Mahindra Scorpio.

The farmers have blocked one side of the highway to protest against the setting up of a biogas plant at Mushkabad village.

ACP Sandeep Singh belonged to Bathinda and had been living in Chandigarh. His gunman, Paramjot Singh, was from Ferozepur.