Amnesty Intl seeks independent probe

“Impunity for extrajudicial executions is a serious issue in India. Authorities in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh need to urgently conduct an independent criminal investigation into the cases to determine if it involved extrajudicial executions disguised as ‘encounter’ killings. If the killings are found to be unlawful, those responsible should be brought to justice”

Hyderabad: The Amnesty International India on Thursday asked both the Telangana and Andhra Pradesh governments to order independent investigations into the killing of five under-trials by Telangana Police and 20 suspected red sanders smugglers by the AP police on April 7, respectively.

“The Telangana Police said the five under-trials-Viquaruddin, Amjad Ali, Mohammed Hanif, Zakir Ali and Izhar Khan-were being taken in a van by 17 policemen from the Warangal central prison to a court in Hyderabad. They said the under-trials attempted to overpower the policemen and snatched their assault rifles, and claimed they opened fire in self-defence. Video footage given to Amnesty International India by a journalist appears to show the five under-trials inside the police van appear to be handcuffed,” the Amnesty said, in a press release, on Thursday.

“Impunity for extrajudicial executions is a serious issue in India,” said Abhirr V P, Campaigner at Amnesty International India. “Authorities in Telangana need to urgently conduct an independent criminal investigation into the case to determine if it involved extrajudicial executions disguised as ‘encounter’ killings,” he said. The five under trials had been arrested on suspicion of killing two police officials and a state paramilitary official in different incidents between 2007 and 2010, and other offences.

On April 1, two suspected members of a banned group allegedly shot dead two policemen in Nalgonda district of Telangana State. The police say that the suspects were killed three days later in an armed exchange with the police, in which another policeman was also killed. According to guidelines issued by the National Human Rights Commission in 2010, ‘fake encounters’ must be investigated by an independent agency.

In September 2014, the Supreme Court stated in the PUCL versus State of Maharashtra case that killings in police encounters require independent investigations. Meanwhile, the Amnesty International has asked the Government of Andhra Pradesh to conduct a thorough probe into the killing of 20 suspected red sanders smugglers by the AP Police. In a statement, it said the investigation must be done in a swift and in an independent manner. If the killings were found to be unlawful, those responsible should be brought to justice, it said.

A senior police official told journalists that the police found the men illegally cutting down endangered red sanders trees. He said when the men were asked to surrender, they attacked the police with stones and axes, forcing them to open fire in self-defence. However, no police official was injured. Most suspected smugglers were shot in the back, it said. In recent years, there have been several ‘encounter’ killings of suspected red sandalwood smugglers by the police.

In May 2014, the police killed three suspected smugglers in Chittoor. Another five suspected smugglers were reported having been killed in Andhra Pradesh between June and August. “In many cases the so-called smugglers are poor woodcutters employed by organised gangs,” said Abhirr. “The curbing of red sanders smuggling must not be used as an excuse to ignore human rights,” he added.