New Delhi - Rights groups called on Wednesday for a full investigation into the death of 20 suspected illegal loggers, killed when police opened fire in a forest in southern India notorious for sandalwood smuggling.
The head of the anti-smuggling task force behind the killings has said his officers acted in self-defence on Tuesday after they were attacked by men armed with axes, sticks and stones in the remote forest of Chittoor in Andhra Pradesh state.
But local activists have questioned that account and accused police of regularly using excessive force on wood-cutters, many of whom are poor migrant workers from the neighbouring state of Tamil Nadu.
“The killing of 20 suspected red sandalwood smugglers by the Andhra Pradesh police must be investigated in a swift, thorough, and independent manner,” said Amnesty International in a statement on Wednesday.
“If the killings are found to be unlawful, those responsible should be brought to justice.”
The National Human Rights Commission has demanded a detailed report from state authorities, saying the incident involved a “serious violation of human rights”.
The red sandalwood that grows in southern India is highly sought after in neighbouring China and other parts of East Asia, mainly for making furniture.
India banned its sale in 2000 after the tree was placed on an endangered list but illegal logging is rampant.
Most of the wood is smuggled out through north-east India into Myanmar.
Activists accuse police of targeting low-level workers in the forests, while the heads of the organised criminal networks behind the smuggling often go unpunished.
Authorities in Chittoor have ordered an investigation into the latest incident.
Indian police have long come under fire from human rights groups for so-called “encounter killings”, in which they shoot suspected criminals to sidestep court procedures and then claim the victim fired first.
The Supreme Court ruled last September that police killings must be investigated by an independent agency or a police unit not involved in the case.
AFP