The killing of three Tamil-speaking men by Karnataka foresters on Saturday (August 15, 2026) following an alleged exchange of fire and suspected poaching activity has revived memories of a chilling forest massacre that shook the country 11 years ago.

On April 7, 2015, the newly-formed Red Sanders Anti-Smuggling Taskforce in Andhra Pradesh gunned down as many as 20 woodcutters hailing from Tamil Nadu in the Seshachalam forest area at the foot of the Tirumala Hills. The Hindu report described it as “the bloodiest incident in the history of the decades-old menace of red sanders smuggling.”

As per the claim of the Taskforce, which comprised of Police and Forest Department personnel, a combing operation was being carried out near Srinivasa Mangapuram, Srivarimettu, and Eethagunta on the Seshachalam hill ranges. Spotting footprints, one Taskforce group moved towards Eethagunta, and another towards Cheekateegalakona. On finding over 100 woodcutters felling trees and carrying logs, the personnel asked them to surrender. However, the woodcutters rained stones and hurled sickles at the team, injuring some of them.

“When they started attacking us, we fired random shots in self-defence,” a Taskforce member was quoted as saying. In no time, 20 woodcutters from Tiruvannamalai, Villupuram and Vellore – all working for wages – fell dead.

Just three days before the encounter, Deputy Inspector General of Police M. Kantha Rao, the head of the Taskforce, had sought permission from the State government to open fire at those illegally entering the forest. “While the intention apparently was to prevent outsiders from plundering forest wealth, the timing of the encounter has raised eyebrows even in government circles,” wrote the Frontline, a sister publication of The Hindu.

The bloodshed triggered widespread outrage and also fear. According to a report in the Frontline, amid fears that they could be “marked” and harassed in the name of investigation, several relatives of the slain men initially stayed away, and only seven bodies were claimed by relatives.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu briefed then Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh and Governor E.S.L. Narasimhan over phone about the ‘encounter’.

AIADMK govt.’s reaction

The AIADMK was in power in Tamil Nadu then, and O. Panneerselvam was holding the fort as Chief Minister following the conviction of his predecessor J. Jayalalithaa in a corruption case in September 2014. While almost all political parties reacted sharply to the incident, Jayalalithaa broke her silence only a day later. In a statement, she raised doubts over the “self-defence” theory of the Taskforce.

“The statements of the activists and the published photographs raise doubts if the Andhra Pradesh police were justified in their action,” she said. Even if the labourers were involved in the smuggling of red sanders, it remains doubtful if the red sanders anti-smuggling unit had only used the required force, the former Chief Minister said. She granted a solatium of ₹2 lakh from the party funds to the families of each of the deceased.

“Ms. Jayalalithaa’s statement has come in the wake of criticism that she has maintained silence on the alleged human rights violation, when the whole nation is shocked,” The Hindu reported.

The issue had also echoed in the Rajya Sabha, with membrs seeking a probe by the CBI or by a senior judge. The then Home Minister read out a statement detailing activities related to red sanders smuggling.

Meanwhile, human rights activists said details recorded in the First Information Report appeared “artificial” and “fabricated” to somehow make a case justifying the shootout.

Inconsistencies in FIR

People’s Union for Civil Liberties national general secretary V. Suresh said the contents of the FIR were patently absurd as they were full of inconsistencies and contradictions, which only led to the inference that it was fabricated.

“Even going by the FIR, the woodcutters only showed the firearms and did not open fire. It also discloses that they allegedly threw arrows… how can arrows be fired when no bows were found,” he asked, according to contemporaneous reports.

People’s Watch executive director Henry Tiphagne said burns and other injuries on the bodies indicated the woodcutters were subjected to torture before being killed. Even after five days of the killings, the post-mortem reports indicating the cause of death were not available, he said.

In August that year, by when Jayalalithaa had returned as Chief Minister following her acquittal by the Karnataka High Court (a verdict reversed by the Supreme Court in February 2017, after her death), she handed over letters appointing to government jobs, five women, related to some of the victims, at the Secretariat.

“Of them, three women had come with their infants. Moved by their plight, Ms. Jayalalithaa touched the cheek of a baby girl which looked surprised as she kissed her on the head. The other babies looked bemused. It was a goodwill gesture on the part of the government to give jobs to the suffering family members, most of whom were young widows. They were appointed as assistant cooks, noon meal organisers and anganwadi assistants,” The Hindu report said.

Published - August 17, 2026 02:18 pm IST