28.10.2016

Press Release

Condemn the Malkangiri encounter killing at Andhra Orissa border

Demand of Judicial enquiry by a sitting Judge of High Court

End the impunity on encounter killing


Civil Liberties Monitoring Committee strongly condemns the encounter killing of more than 30 CPI Maoists cadre at Malkangiri near Andhra Orissa border. As per the reports and sources the Maoists party cadre gathered for an annual meeting in the dense forest area of AOB. Their aim was not to attack any police personnel or government establishment. It was a routine practice of any political party to conduct such type of meetings. CPI Maoist is a banned political party by the government because of which they had no other way but to have a meeting in the dense forest area. Attacking on this meeting area in the late night and killing them while they are sleeping is a brutal act by the police. Such act is called as state sponsored murder which is politically motivated. If at all the state wanted them not to meet or gather at a place for any plan of action it should have stopped them from gathering as they had every information of their movement; but the intention of the state was to kill the Maoists cadre so they surrounded them and opened fire with all the plan and killed them while they were in sleep.

This committee believes that this encounter is the part of Indian government policy of eliminating the dissent groups from all corners of the country so that no one can raise voice against the anti-people policies of Indian government and then the government can easily occupy the land and forest areas belonging to Tribals and sell them to MNCs. The matter of fact is that this encounter is part & parcel of ‘Operation Green Hunt’ which was war initiated against the Tribals to occupy the natural resources belonging to them.

Civil Liberties Monitoring Committee strongly believes that the encounter culture of the state is very dangerous for the democratic set up and violates all the rules and norms of judicial procedure system. No one has the right to kill anyone especially the police and security forces whose duty is to work within the framework of law; law does not give power to the police and security forces to open the fire with an intention to kill but they should arrest them, produce before the court and the legal process has to be followed. But, in this case no legal procedure was followed instead the legal norms were completely violated by the protectors of law themselves. This culture is encouraged and developed because of the politicians and the ruling class of the country just to protect their own interest. People should come forward and pressurize the political class and take initiative to stop the encounter killings and follow the due process of law.

Therefore, Civil Liberties Monitoring Committee demands: 

1.      Stop encounter killings and combing operations which is going on in the AOB zone.

2.      Initiate the judicial enquiry by a sitting judge of High Court so that people can know the facts of killing more than 30 people in the name of encounter.

3.      Release the Maoists party leaders those who are in the illegal custody of police and produce them before the court of law.

4.      Judiciary must initiative to end the impunity and punish the security forces who are killing the people in the name of encounter.

Lateef Mohammed Khan

Gen. Secretary