Rights panel looks into allegation of police highhandedness in tackling sunday’s protest over nice road.
The police are getting tougher with the farmers who protested against the meeting between chief minister BS Yeddyurappa and officials of the Nandi Infrastructure Corridor Enterprises (NICE) at Hemmigepura, near Kengeri, on Sunday. But they themselves are under the scrutiny of the state human rights commission, which is looking into allegations of highhandedness in dealing with the protest.
Stringent laws are being slapped against the farmers, who were
allegedly protesting against land acquisition for the expressway being constructed by NICE between Bangalore and Mysore. The Ramanagaram police have registered cases of rioting and causing hurt to public servants and preventing them from discharging their duties against the farmers. At least 30 farmers have been remanded in judicial custody, the police said.
The farmers had surrounded the venue of the meeting on Sunday. The police had to resort to a lathicharge when they were attacked by the farmers with iron rods, sticks and stones. The farmers were angry that they were not called for the meeting between the chief minister and NICE officials, even though the Supreme Court had clearly stated that any discussion on the expressway should also involve representatives of the farmers.
A seriously injured farmers’ leader Venkatachalaiah, belonging to Karnataka Prantha Raitha Sangha is undergoing treatment at the BGS Global hospital in Kengeri.
The Karnataka State Human Rights Commission (SHRC) is now looking into allegations of highhandedness displayed by the police in tackling the protesting farmers at Hemmigepura. SHRC chairperson justice SR Nayak visited the BGS Global Hospital in Kengeri and also the central jail at Parappana Agrahara on Monday to take statements of the injured and arrested farmers.
Justice Nayak told DNA that he had spoken to the farmers of the NICE Yojane Virodhi Horata Samithi. He had taken suo motu cases against the police lathicharge based on newspaper reports and the visuals telecast by TV channels.
“We have seen the video clippings and we found that the farmers were kicked by the cops with their boots,” the SHRC chairman said. “Some of them have visible marks of injuries on their bodies.
We agree that the police can use canes but there were instances when they used iron rods and kicked them (the farmers) with boots. There were no women police at the protest venue and men police personnel dragged the women protestors by their sarees,” he said. The police also used filthy languages against the women, justice Nayak said.
Justice Nayak urged the government to initiate immediate disciplinary action against erring police personnel. He said the SHRC would direct the government to submit a report on the action taken against the police personnel.
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