The National Human Rights Commission has found evidence of police highhandedness and political vendetta against Opposition party workers in the Lagacherla incident in Telangana last year after land losers turned against state government officials trying to acquire their land for a special economic zone (SEZ) project undertaken by the Congress government.

Lagacherla comes under the Kodangal Assembly constituency of Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy.

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A NHRC team, after visiting Lagacherla following reports of police brutality, reported that villagers though were not hounded into hiding in the forest or displaced from their homes, investigations revealed evidence of highhandedness of police and local authorities.

In its report, the NHRC stated, “The villagers who were arrested at night were beaten up at the police station in Parigi and were threatened not to speak about the beating in front of the magistrate. They were kept at PS Parigi, whereas this is not mentioned in the GD (general diary) entry. Many of them were neither at the spot nor went to any protest. Their land is also not affected due to the project. Police have also arrested such people.”

Cases were registered against minors, students, and government officials. Some of these people were not even present on the day the district collector and other officials faced an attack from the irate villagers.

The report also indicated that the Opposition party workers were targeted. “Opposition party (BRS and BJP) people are being targeted more. Neither any Congress supporter was booked by police nor were they arrested,” the report added.

Three FIRs were registered against the villagers and 48 people were named in them. While 29 people named in the FIRs were arrested, 17 went absconding.

Last year, the Telangana government proposed a special economic zone in Dudyal mandal of Kodangal Assembly constituency. The state government planned to acquire 1314 acres of land from Hakimpet, Polepally, Roti Banda Tanda, Pulicherla Kunta Tanda and Lagacherla villages of Dudyal mandal.

BRS working president KT Rama Rao said the NHRC report validated what they had been saying about the gross violation of human rights in Lagacherla by the state administration under the Congress government. “The report exposed what we have been saying all along – the Congress government and its police acted highhandedly towards the tribal farmers and women of Lagacherla… I demand an unconditional apology to the farmers of Lagacharla from Revanth Reddy, who is not just the chief minister but also the home minister of Telangana,” said Rao.