AP-TN war over encounter

Tirupati: The encounter in the Seshachalam forests in which 20 red sanders woodcutters and ‘smugglers’ most of them who hail from various parts of Tamil Nadu has taken a serious political turn and appears to be leading towards sort of war between the two neighbouring states.While the incident sparked off protests in Tamil Nadu and the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) issued a notice to the Andhra Pradesh government, the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Panneerselvam demanded a probe.

He wrote to the AP government, demanding a probe into the encounter. “In case of any human rights violation, it is essential that action is taken against those who caused the deaths and appropriate compensation is paid to the families of the victims,” he said in a letter to his AP CM Chandrababu Naidu. Protests were held in front of the Andhra club in Chennai and other parts of Tamil Nadu. As many as 10 APSRTC buses were reportedly attacked and damaged by unidentified angry miscreants at Chennai and various parts of Tamil Nadu.

As a precautionary measure RTC has stopped plying of buses to TN. An attempt to set the bus on fire was made near Tada on the border of AP and TN. Various political parties and human rights activists staged demonstrations in Chennai and across the state of Tamil Nadu strongly condemning the killing of Tamils inside the Seshachalam forests. The Tamil Nadu Chief Minister said, “Innocent Tamils had been massacred” by Andhra police.

Former TN chief minister Karunanidhi observed that the killings happened due to the failure of the Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu governments to resolve the red sanders smuggling issue through appropriate means. MDMK chief Vaiko demanded that the policemen who killed the labourers be tried for murder and sought compensation of Rs 20 lakh each to the families of the deceased in the police action.

The NHRC, who took suo moto cognizance of the incident, issued notices to the Andhra Pradesh Chief Secretary and Director General of Police while the Chittoor administration ordered a magisterial inquiry into the killings APCC president N Raghuveera Reddy also called it a cold blooded murder by TDP government. He said the police left the real smugglers and killed poor workers.

Buses to AP from Chennai cancelled

Chennai: The Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corp (APSRTC) on Tuesday cancelled around 40 services from Chennai to various parts of Andhra Pradesh as a precaution, an official said. "Around 40 services to different destinations in Andhra Pradesh have been cancelled from 6 p.m.," an APSRTC official said. Stray protests were organised in parts of Tamil Nadu by Tamil groups against the killing of 20 people, mostly from Tamil Nadu, by the Andhra Pradesh Police on Tuesday.