'Record statements of 3 witnesses here, send them to JM in AP'

A city-based human rights outfit today sought a direction from a court to record the statement of the three main witnesses to the killing of 20 woodcutters in Andhra Pradesh and send them to their counterparts in that state, saying they would be 'harassed' and put to hardship if they did so there.
Henry Tiphange, Managing Trustee of People's Watch, in his petition, contended that the witnesses would be 'harrassed' and put to hardship if they gave the statement under Section 164 (recording of confession or statement) of CrPC against police and forest officials of that state there.
He urged the Judicial Magistrate V here to record the statements and send them to the JM in Andhra Pradesh.

JM Dhananjeyan, who took up the petition, posted the matter for hearing tomorrow.
Tiphagne submitted that the fact-finding team, comprising members of their outfit and Citizens Human Rights Movement, came across the three - Sekar, Balamurugan and Elangovan - with whom 11 out of 20 woodcutters travelled. They could identify those responsible for the killings and how they died, he said.
He pointed out that National Human Rights Commission had recorded the statement of Sekar and Balamurugan and directed its Joint Registrar to record that of Elangovan who could not travel as he lacked ID documents.

NHRC had also directed Andhra pradesh government to record their statements under CrPC sec.164 (recording of confession and statements) before the JM, he said.

He said People's watch had the written affidavits of the three, which could be filed in this JM court. But the JM should also record the statement of the witnesses.
The witnesses were under the protection of People's Watch and Tamil Nadu police had also given protection to them. But recording their statement before an Andhra Pradesh JM would be an "ordeal" as they would be put to hardship. Besides they were conversant only with Tamil, he said.
Twenty people were gunned down in Andhra Pradesh's Chittoor district in a police operation on April 17, said to be against Red Sanders smugglers that came under severe attack from the government and political parties in Tamil Nadu, which claimed 12 victims were labourers from their state.

A murder case was registered against the police and forest officials on a complaint by one Muniamma whose husband was among those killed.