Global Information2015 sandalwood smugglers encounter in Andhra Pradesh information
| 2015 Andhra shootout | |
|---|---|
  Chandragiri class=notpageimage| Location of Chandragiri, Chittoor in Andhra Pradesh | |
| Location | Chandragiri Mandal Chittoor District Andhra Pradesh, India |
| Date | 7 April 2015 05:00 a.m. (local time) (UTC+05:30) |
| Target | Red sanders smugglers |
Attack type | Shooting, encounter killing |
| Weapons | Rifles |
| Deaths | 20 |
| Perpetrators | Andhra Pradesh Police |
| Motive | Punishment |
On 7 April 2015, Andhra Pradesh Police shot twenty suspected woodcutters in the Seshachalam forest in Chittoor District, Andhra Pradesh, India. Red Sanders Anti-Smuggling Task Force DIG Kantha Rao said that the smugglers attacked the team with sickles, rods and axes. Asked if the attack could have been quelled without such fatalities, Rao said, "We gave them several warnings but they did not stop attacking us. There were over a hundred of them." Asked how many of his men were grievously injured, he said, "Nobody is seriously hurt from our side. Their superior training saved their lives."[1]
Human rights activists did not believe the police version of the shootings. They say some of the bodies had burn marks and others had bullet injuries in the chest and head. Witnesses said that some of those killed were pulled off a bus by the policemen.[2]
- ^ Mondal, Sudipto (8 April 2015). "Red sanders smugglers' killings: 2 encounters, 20 bodies, several unanswered questions". Hindustan Times. Archived from the original on 7 April 2015.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
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