THE ANDHRA PRADESH DALIT MAHA SABHA
6-3-600/A2/1, F 5 Tejaswini apartments Hiltop
colony Erramanjil Colony Hyderabad
- 82
- - - - -
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
BEFORE
THE ANDHRA PRADESH STATE HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION
HYDERABAD :: AT HYDERABAD
HRC
NO:
OF 2012
BETWEEN:
ANDHRA PRADESH DALITH MAHA
SABHA
Rep by Founder General Secretary
Katti Padma Rao
. . . . . . . . PETITIONER
AND
1. State of Andhra Pradesh
rep. by Chief
Secretary
Government of
Andhra Pradesh
Hyderabad 500 022
2. State of A.P rep Principal Secretary to
Ministry of
Home
Government of Andhra
Pradesh
3. Director General of Police
Government of
Andhra Pradesh
4. Deputy Inspector General
of Police
Visakhapatnam
5. State of A.P rep Principal Secretary to
Ministry of
Revenue
Government of
Andhra Pradesh
6. The District Collector
Srikakulam
District
7.
The Superintendent of Police
Sirkakulam
Srikakulam
District.
................RESPONDENTS
PETITION FILED UNDER SECTION 12 A OF
NATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS ACT 1993
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------
For the reasons mentioned in the accompanying affidavit the petitioner
herein in prays that the Hon'ble Human Rights Commission may be pleased to
intervene and direct the respondents to take stern action against the abettors like Botsa
Vasudevarao and Botsa Satyanaryana u/s 120(b) and punish them as per law. b)
To register cases against all accused u/s 302 and u/s 3 (V) of the Scheduled Castes and the
Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act 1989, c) To register cases against all accused
u/s 25 of the Indian Arms Act, 1959, d))
To register a case against against respondents 4,6, and 7 concerned station
house officer u/s 120(b) d) To appoint advocate commission to visit the
area of Laximpet, investigate and report to the Hon'ble State Commission, e)
To organise a public hearing of Lakshimpet dalits. f) To establish
special court at Lakshimpet itself to ensure justice that case be probed within
six months,
g) to
identify government lands and to distribute to oppressed castes and communities like
Dalits, Adivasis, Muslims, and other
weaker castes as self-assertion and dignity is
invariably linked to the land question for the vast majority of the oppressed
people. h) all the disputed land of 250 acres at Lakshimpet must be
distributed to the 80 families of dalits, especially victims family must
be allotted 5 acres each. i) To pay the Rs 10 Lakhs compensation
and rehabilitate the family members of victims. j) To provide a
government job to the members of the victims immediately. k) Lift the cases foisted against the
dalits of Lakshimpet l) appoint special public prosecutor j) And to pass
such other order and orders as deemed fit and proper in the circumstances of the case.
COUNSEL FOR THE PETITIONER
BEFORE THE ANDHRA PRADESH STATE HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION
HYDERABAD :: AT HYDERABAD
HRC NO:
OF 2012
BETWEEN:
ANDHRA
PRADESH DALITH MAHA SABHA
Rep by
Founder General Secretary Katti Padma Rao
S/0 Katti
Subba Rao aged 59 years r/o 6-3-600/A2/1,
F 5
Tejaswini apartments Hiltop colony
Erramanjil
Colony Hyderabad
500 082
. . . . . . . . PETITIONER
1.
State of Andhra Pradesh
rep. by Chief Secretary
Government of Andhra Pradesh
Hyderabad
500 022
2.
State of A. P
rep Secretary to
Ministry of Home
Government of Andhra Pradesh
3.
Director General of Police
Government of Andhra Pradesh
4.
Deputy Inspector General of Police
Visakhapatnam
5.
State of A.P
rep Secretary to
Ministry of Revenue
Government of Andhra Pradesh
6.
The District Collector
Srikakulam District
7.
The Superintendent of Police
Sirkakulam
Srikakulam District.
................RESPONDENTS
AFFIDAVIT
FILED BY THE PETITIONER
I. Katti
Padma Rao S/0 Katti Subba Rao aged 59 years r/o 6-3-600/A2/1, F 5 Tejaswini
apartments Hiltop colony Erramanjil Colony Hyderabad 500 082, do here by
solemnly affirm and state on oath as follows:
I am the
Petitioner herein and therefore, I am well acquainted with facts of the case. I
am a social activist and poet and an activist pioneering the dalit rights.
It is
submitted that the oppression of the dalits continues unabated in the state. Reminding
one of the infamous bloody past incidents that witnessed the brutal killings of
Dalits in the state like, Karamchedu, Neerukonda, Dechavaram and Tsundur, five dalits were hacked to death, and about 30 dalit men
and women were critically injured in a well-orchestrated attack by Turpu Kapu
backward caste brahmanical forces in Lakshimpeta village
of Vangara block in Srikakulam District on 12 June 2012.
It is pertinent to mention that whichever dominant
castes are in power people belong to those castes continue to conduct violent
attacks on the dalits, when NTR was in power six dalits were brutally killed in Karamchedu. When Neduramalli Janardhan Reddy was in
power, they chopped off the eight dalits in tsundur village of Guntur
District and dumped them in River Tungabhadra.
Now when Botsa Satyanarayana who call himself a B.C is the Pradesh
Congress President, Botsa Vasudevarao Naidu and horde of turpu kapus, armed
with swords, axes have tortured and slaughtered ruthlessly the dalits of
Lakshimpet in Srikakulam District. The incidents listed here may not figure in any history of
post-independence India.
Most Indians may not have heard of these places.
Lakshmipet too, many soon be similarly forgotten. This petition is
to ensure that it will not be easily erased in the history of Human right's
struggle and for the justice guaranteed by
the Constitution of India which was written by the great Dalit
legend Dr. Ambedkar.
It is
submitted that I am filing this petition after visit of our
fact finding committee to the Lakshimpet
consisting of Chintapally Guru Prasad , the President of Andhra Pradesh
Dalit Maha Sabha and other three Excutive Committee members namely P. Benjimen,
Gokara Narayana Rao and Nuthalapati Chandra Sekhar.
It is further
submitted that on 12th June 2012 the landowning Thurpu kappus of Lakshmpet village, Vangara Mandalam in
Srikakulam District surrounded the dalitwada of the village at seven in the
morning. Groups of around 20 members each, armed with deadly weapons like sickles, hatchets, axes,
crowbars. They dragged the dalits from
their houses and lathis and showered inhuman abuse and insults on them. " you maala bas….., you think you
have grown big enough to be cultivators?
They ranted in their cast arrogance.
Shouting “you think you can tilt the land along side us”. They launched brutal attack and butchered the Burada Sundara Rao (45),
Chitri Appadu (35), Nivarti Venkati (65) and Nivarti Sangameshu (40) who
died in the bloodbath. Bodduru Papaiah died in King
George Hospital,
Vishakhapatnam on 20 June while taking
treatment. With his death, the number
of people killed in the massacre increased to five.
The fact finding
committee members also observed that each body bore around 40-50 knife and
spear wounds. The victims died immediately after they received injuries. They have become martyrs in the struggle for
land and as offering to the fire of caste hatred.
About 30 people injured apart from the five who died. They are undergoing treatment in RIMS Hospital
in Srikakulam. Kalamata Ganapati (35)
Kalamata Prakash (50) Kalamati Simhachalam, Kalamati Gangulu, Gonela Ravi (25)
Nivirti Gangaia (50) Kalamata Gaddiah (Lachchaiah’s son) Kalamati Gaddaiah
(Chinna Mutyalu’s son) Nivirti Simhachala,
Nivirti Narsaiah, Nivirti Rama Rao, Bodduri Bhogesu, Gongada Shivudu, Nivirti
Darappadu, Nivirti Gangaiah, Kalamati Sngamma, Chittari Yellaiah, Kalamati
Gangulu, Bodduri Gowaraiah are fighting
for their lives in the hospital.
“My father Venkati begged with folded hands to spare him
saying the entire family depended on him. But the attackers did not heed his
appeal and killed him on the spot,” said a shocked Anuradha who had become
unconscious after witnessing the attack. The accused entered the homes
of victims and ransacked their belongings on the plea of searching for the
their men.The accused pushed, insulted and outraged the modesty of dalit women
and the same was witnessed by the total community.
The women who had their husbands at 7.30 am had lost their husbands
within minutes. The accused axed some, speared some and hit some of them
with the iron rods indiscriminately resulting in their instantaneous death.
The victims also heard loud cries made by the accused and some others
instigating the other accused to kill the dalits who ever was sighted.
Due to the frightening attack on the deceased who witnessed the
attack ran helter skelter for fear of their lives.
26 year old Chittari Sridevi,
Borada Kasalu, Nivirti Ramudamma, Viviri Venkatamma were widowed and rendered
helpless by this gruesome attack. Most
of them are between the ages of 30-40 years, all mother. Women who had husbands at 5 in the morning
lost them by 7.30. The children of
these deceased families are thrown into the streets without any security both
socially and economically. There is no
answer for the fate of the children.
It is further humbly submitted that Lakshimpeta is the
biggest massacre by the upper cates after Karamchedu and Tsundur. These caste villains surrounded the Dalits,
chased and hunted them for two and half hours with deadly weapons and derived
perverse pleasure from attacking even dead bodies with the words and axes. The
toorpu Kapu landlords here, even though BCs in name, are great believer in caste
supremacy. The Kalingas, Koppula
velmas and tiirpu in Srikakulam in Srikakulam district perform the role
undertaken by the Kammas, Reddies and Kshatriyas in Coastal Andhra.
The Lakshmet village is not unique. It seems to be
a reenactment of primordial punishment to the subordinated castes that Manu
had ordained over two millennia ago. Infact Land
was acquired by government for Madduvalasa reservoir built on two tributaries
of Nagavali river, Suvarnamukhi and Vegavathi which, while displacing thousands
of people irrigated 15000 acres of land. In Lakshimpeta village, after the
construction of the reservoir, 240 acres of land intermittently comes out of
the submergence when water dries up. As the land turns fertile, rich crops were
being raised on it with profitable cultivation in the past five years. The
government paid a compensation of two lakh rupees per acre to Kapu land owners
and settled 190 Kapu families and 60 Dalit families about seven kilometres away
from the reservoir. The Dalit families were not paid any compensation or given
employment though they were also displaced and resettled except for four
families, who had assigned lands—only 40 thousand rupees per acre were paid to
each of these four Dalit families. Meanwhile one each from 40 families of the
Kapu caste was provided with employment in the reservoir office departments in
addition to compensation amount for land. All 250 families were settled in pacca
houses built by the government.
Having been deprived
of land for centuries, the Dalits of Lakshimpeta, as in most other cases,
aspired to take over the unaffected land under the project and they have been asserting their rights over the land which now
falls under the control of the government. This led discontent among the Thurpu Kaapu was on the
rise and they were waiting for an opportunity to liquidate the Dalits situation slowly led to the cornage of the
dalits on the unprecedented scale in the over which the entire civilized world
was shocked.
The dalits were subjected to a social boycott. They are not being called for cooli work, no
entry in schools and hospitals , forcing them out of village. All these
acts were intended to make the village hot for the dalits to live and slowly to
send them out the village. When the dalits failed to yield to the threats
of the upper castes they began to seriously consider other methods to subjugate
and eliminate the dalits. The dalits were particularly
ill-treated, assaulted and they
are being massacred and facing genocidal attacks.
It is submitted that
Lakshmpet is not one of incident an unfortunate aberration in
globalizing shining India.
Every village in India
is a potential Lakshimpet. If most villages wear a Vencor of peace
and tranquility much celebrated in text books and tourist brochures this owes
to the tacit compromise and reconcilement dalits have made with their
demeaning condition. It is the same compromise that has carried India
through centuries of having been bestowed with utterly undeserved
attributes such as tolerance, nonviolence and love of peace. Whenever
this compromise has collapsed the inherent violence of this society has reared
its ugly face to brutally suppress any possible eruption of the wrath of the
wretched and once again history of oppression repeated violating all human rights
of Dalits.
There are 80 dalit families and 10 non Kaapu Backward
caste communities. all these non- kapu BC Communities not participated in the
massacre. It is true that kaapu community in around 7 villages of
Lakshimpet decided to forge a united front against the dalits and conspired to
attack on Lakshimpet dalits. Including women and children of neighbouring
villages participated in the massacre. The reason behind their
participation in massacre is not just they belong to the same community but
also the same situation is prevailing in their villages also. .
It is further submitted that as the 240 acres of land—that once belonged to Kapu community became government land after compensation was being paid—came out of submergence every now and then, 190 acres of land has been cultivated by the Kapu families while only 60 acres by 80 dalit families in the last five years. Kapu community in the village claimed that the entire land belongs to them as it once belonged them. Dalits argued with the local revenue administration that they should be allowed to cultivate this land as it was now government land. This enraged the feeling of the kaapus and sparks of rationalization have started to fly. In Lakshimpeta village under Vangara Mandal about 80 Dalit families are living and a majority them are agriculture workers. Two year ago, the Dalits from the village had requested the district authorities to allow them to cultivate land.
. It is a fact that the district administration
has supported the dalit community in the past to cultivate the land of 60 acres. Few
days ago when some Dalits tried to cultivate the lands, BC leaders attacked
them and the police as a routine filed cases against both the groups. So far,
both the communities have clashed with each other four times. A month ago when
the BCs attacked them Dalits filed a case and a police picket was set up in the
village. This had enraged the BC leaders who were trying to capture the
lands. The land owning upper caste were on prowl and waiting for an opportunity
to wreak vengeance against dalits Revenue officials visited the places
and tried to settle the matter with both the warring groups but failed. They
have also declared that they would not allow either of the groups to cultivate
the disputed lands.
It is submitted that the local administration maintained silence as the Kapu
caste people were supported by powerful lobbies within the ruling party from
the state to the bloc levels within the same caste. Both sides of the dispute
approached the court for justice. The court as usual stayed the cultivation
from both sides till its judgment. But this also triggered fury among the Kapu
backward community and they blamed squarely the dalit community for the court
order, though both communities had approached the court. The former local block
president of Congress Party, Botsa Vasudevanaidu instigated the Kapus against
the dalit people with the active encouragement from PCC chief, Botsa
Satyanarayana from North Andhra Region. Laximpet represents the
quintessence of caste India.
.he petitioner
further submits that some of the shudra castes have emerged in dominant
position in the production process and successfully translated this in the
political cultural domain. Since the formation of the state, landowning
castes in the various regions – be it Kammas or Reddies or Kapus or Kalingas or
velmas or Kshatriyas have been unable to bear the sight of dalits tilling land
on their own, developed grudges against them claiming that the Dalits have no
right to land on their own, conducted violent attacks on them or expelled them
from villages. In the earlier period the contest was between the brahmines and
the peasant castes. No, it is increasingly seen between the landowning
peasant castes and dalits as landless labourers. The history witnessed the same
with Reddy and Kamma Communities in Andhra Pradesh. This
aspired the kaapu community to emerge as new caste-based regional outfit
to grab the power in Andhra Pradesh.and this led polirization of all sub
castes of Kaapus. They have become the powerful agents of land grab in the
region for thermal power plants, industrial corridor projects and mining in
North Andhra Region. They are maintaining land mafia’s and have acquired
thousands of acres of for their own families. There is a strong bond between state power and
caste hatred of this kind. The modernist
state that has given caste a new lease of life; it is also its fountain head
its policies and institutions have increasing reinforcing castes and
accentuated their viciousness as never before.
These castes are responsible for the police firings and
state-sponsored killings of the people, who are protesting against land grab in
the region. They are the powerful political leaders of the region who are in
real sense representatives of globalisation and displacement of hundreds of
thousands of people in the region.
It is submitted that police picket in the village, instead of solving the issue and the bloc has been placed under the atrocitiy-proned area. This shows such an attack as the one on dalits on 12 June has been expected to happen. In these circumstances, the government itself is directly responsible for the massacre of dalits. In the pretext of by elections on 12th June majority of police personnel at the picket were sent away on by-election duty. The police forces returned to the village only after giving enough time to the caste chauvinists to carry out the massacre unhindered. History testifies to this set pattern of conduct of the state forces as every time they remained mute witnesses to the upper caste brahmanical fascist attacks on dalits. In fact the Indian state forces like police, paramilitary and army always either sided with upper caste big landing owning communities or stayed as onlookers over the atrocities as they represented the interests of the brahmanical upper caste Indian state.
It is
further submitted that Srikakulam near the Government Hospital,
Dalit organizations and members of the victims’ families have organized dharna
demanding stern action against those involved in the attack. They refused to
take the bodies till action was initiated against the guilty.
It is
submitted that the political leaders of all ruling
parties hovered over the surviving victims of dalit families pouring out their
crocodile tears and false promises of jobs, lakhs of compensation and
distribution of land. People have seen through the cunningness of these leaders
as well as the empty rhetoric of their false promises. The upper caste
brahmanical forces would never allow land to come into the hands of dalits as
it is both symbolically and in real sense economic and political power. Further
it will nullify all the coercive methods of surplus maximization of the landed
through the forced rendering of the dalits landless and hence dependent on the
upper castes for their survival. The powers that be have only ensured through
their police and paramilitary hand in glove with politician and the landowning
classes to perpetuate this system by careful promotion of their interests.
Dalit people of Lakshimpeta village have shown exemplary self-assertion to own
the land despite continuous threats and atrocities from the powers that be. Yet
this juncture, the dalits have further threat to their lives.
It is
humbly submitted that it is clear that the accused and others having conspired
and formed themselves into an unlawful assembly armed with deadly weapons like
axes, knives, sticks, iron rods, spears, crow bars and other weapons with
common intention and common object of attacking and butchering the dalits of
Lakshimpet, and in pursuance of the above said conspiracy, common object and
intention, and have attacked the dalits fatally and caused death of 5 dalits
and grievous injuries to more than 30 dalits.
Fsurther
the accused being members of landowning upper castes have most inhumanly
ill-treated the dalits, socially boycotted them removed them from employment,
and openly proclaiming that they would be driven out the village, in pursuance
of their intention has actually carried out their intention. The dalits were particularly ill-treated,
assaulted, and insulted on the ground that they belong to the Scheduled Castes..
the crimes of accused are heinous and grievous and therefore
.therefore the petitioner prays that the Hon'ble State
Human Rights Commission that interest of justice may be please to pass order :;
a) to
investigate by CBI into the circumstances which led to brutal carnage of dalits
in Lakshimpet of Srikakulam District and consequentially protect the human and
fundamental rights of the dalits guaranteed under art. 14,16,19 and 21 of the
Constitutuion of India.
A week after when the law was evoked, it was used against
small insignificant elements among the culprits, leaving out safely the main
abettors and political leaders like Botsa Vasudeva Naidu, Botsa Satyanarayana and others. Hence direct the respondents to take stern action against
the abettors like Botsa Vasudevarao and Botsa Satyanaryana u/s 120(b) and as
per law.
b) To register cases against all accused u/s 3
(V) of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities)
Act 1989.
c) To register cases against all accused u/s 25 of the Indian Arms Act, 1959.
b)
To register a case against case u/s 302 IPC against respondents 4,6, and
7 concerned station house officer
c) to
provide protection to the lives of the victims as there is life threat to victims from the
accused and their kith and kin to protect
their
c)
To appoint advocate commission to visit the area of Laximpet, investigate
and report to the Hon'ble State Commission.
d)
To organise a public hearing of Lakshimpet dalits.
e)
To establish of special court at
Lakshimpet to ensure that case be probed within six months,
f) to
identify government lands and to distribute to oppressed castes and communities like
Dalits, Adivasis, Muslims, and a vast majority of oppressed other weaker castes as self-assertion and dignity is invariably linked to the land
question for the vast majority of the oppressed people.
g) All the disputed land of 250 acres at Lakshimpet
must be distributed to the 80 families of dalits, especially victims
family must be allotted 5 acres each.
h) To pay the Rs 10 Lakhs compensations and rehabililate
the family members of victims.
i) To provide a government job to the members of the
victim.
j) Lift the cases foisted against the dalits of
Lakshimpet
k) And to pass such other order and orders as deemed
fit and proper in the circumstances of
the case.
DEPONENT
VERIFICATION
I,
Katti Padma Rao S/0 Katti Subba Rao aged 59 years
r/o 6-3-600/A2/1, F 5 Tejaswini apartments Hiltop colony Erramanjil Colony
Hyderabad 500 082 do hereby verify the contents of the affidavit and
state on oath that I have verified the Contents of the above paras of affidavit
and declare them to be true to the best of my knowledge and I did not suppress
any material facts.
DEPONENT
Solemnly
affirm on oath on
This 27th
June, 2011
Before
me.
Sd/-Hema Venkatrau.
ADVOCATE
BEFORE THE HON’BLE
ANDHRA PRADESHSTATE HUMAN RIGHTS
COMMISSION
HYDERABAD :: AT HYDERABAD
HRC
NO:
OF 2012
BETWEEN:
ANDHRA PRADESH DALITH MAHA
SABHA
Rep by Founder General Secretary
Katti Padma Rao
. . . . . . . . PETITIONER
AND
- State of Andhra Pradesh
Rep. Chief
Secretary and 6 others
