[Reader-list] Adivasis allege torture in anti-Naxal operations

[Aman Sethi]

Dear all,
A story that I did for The Hindu, but that I dont think was carried in
all editions:
http://beta.thehindu.com/news/states/article432549.ece
best
a/

Adivasis allege torture in anti-Naxal operations

Seventeen Adivasi villagers of Samna in Orissa's Narayanpatna block
claim that they were brutally assaulted in custody last week, an
allegation the police have denied.

According to the villagers, they were picked up on May 9, as part of a
joint operation conducted by the Orissa and Andhra Pradesh police
along the inter-State border, airlifted to a police station in Andhra
Pradesh and held in custody for three days before being released on
May 14.

“Uniformed policemen surrounded our village on Sunday morning [May 9],
when we were leaving for the market,” said Nachika Jaddo, one of those
who were picked up. “Seventeen men, including two dokras [old men]
were rounded up, beaten up and then dragged to a spot 2 km away.”

The villagers were then bundled into a waiting helicopter, blindfolded
and flown to the Salur police station in Vizianagaram district of
Andhra Pradesh. “They tied our hands behind our back and repeatedly
struck us with lathis,” said another victim, who had bruises all over
the back and shoulders. “They kept asking us about Maoists, but we
couldn't understand what they were saying.”

Most of the Adivasis along the Orissa-Andhra Pradesh border speak
Kondi — an Adivasi dialect — and are often unable to communicate with
those outside their tribe. “They spoke to us in Hindi, Oriya and
Telugu, and when we couldn't answer, they hit us all over, including
on the soles of our feet,” said a third victim.

In all, The Hindu interviewed four of the 17 victims, including
60-year-old Nachika Chuchai, with the help of a translator.

Koraput Superintendent of Police Anup Kumar Sahoo confirmed that 17
villagers had been detained for questioning, but denied that they were
beaten up or airlifted. “These 17 men were found in the forest on May
9 near the site of an encounter between security forces and the
Maoists.” They were then taken to Andhra Pradesh on foot, which took
almost three days.” The villagers were immediately produced before a
district magistrate in Salur and released on May 14. None was formally
arrested, the SP said.

Informed sources in the Andhra police suggest that the villagers might
have been picked up as part of a much larger exercise. According to
the sources, the police operation was planned when the Andhra Pradesh
police received information that members of the Kalimela Dalam,
involved in the killing of 38 security force members at Chitrakonda in
2008, were moving through the Narayanpatna jungles.

On May 9, 2010, there was an exchange of fire between Maoists and the
security forces. The local press reported police sources as claiming
that up to 10 Maoists were killed. However, not a single body has been
recovered as yet. The 17 villagers were picked up, soon after the
skirmishes. According to the sources, the villagers were immediately
airlifted to Salur, where they were interrogated for information on
the movement of Maoist companies in Narayanpatna and subsequently
released.

Intelligence sources told The Hindu that Chhattisgarh, Orissa, Andhra
Pradesh and Maharashtra share a set of Mi-17 helicopters which can
carry up to 32 passengers. The sources, however, declined to provide
the exact number of helicopters for reasons of operational security.

Those detained were Nachika Jaddo, Nachika Musri, Nachika Lachna,
Nachika Sudru, Nachika Sehra, Nachika Nando, Nachika Roopa, Nachika
Sonna, Nachika Porda/Podda, Nachika Kuslu, Nachika Abhi, Nachika
Lassu, Nachika Dora and Nachika Chuchai (both above 60), Nachika
Subana, Nachika Johra and Nachika Kumlu.