Bengaluru: The three men killed in an exchange of fire with forest department personnel in Hanur taluk of Chamarajanagar district had ventured deep into Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary to hunt wild animals and had guns, ammunition, knives, torches and cooking utensils, contradicting claims that they had entered the forest in search of missing cattle, forest minister Ramalinga Reddy said in the assembly on Monday.He said that the group had travelled 5 to 8 km inside the forest from the boundary and that 34.25 kg of suspected wild animal meat was recovered from the spot.The statement came as the Opposition accused forest personnel of killing villagers in a staged encounter and demanded action against those involved. BJP members questioned why the men were not shot in the leg.Reddy said that the officials had launched a nightlong operation around 8 pm on Aug 14 after receiving information about hunters entering the Chikkalluru reserve forest. Around 5 am on Aug 15, personnel saw torchlights flashing near Karadikallu Oddu. The men were hiding behind boulders and bushes on an elevated ground. They opened fire with despite being asked to surrender. Forest personnel then fired three rounds from a 12 bore slide action gun, which the govt described as necessary self-defence.“When bullets are fired from these guns, they do not hit a particular body part. They disperse into multiple pellets and hit different parts of the body,” Reddy explained, rejecting allegations that the personnel deliberately targeted the men.Three of the men were injured in the exchange of firing while one fled. The injured men were taken to Kollegal hospital as doctors were unavailable at Hanur primary health centre. All the three were declared dead. A forest beat guard was also injured.The men had carried rice, onions, tomatoes, salt, biscuits, jaggery, coriander powder, steel plates, spoons and tea glasses, besides mobile phones, knives, torches, gunpowder bags and 38 rounds of ammunition used in country made rifles. Bullet marks were found on the suspected wild animal meat and samples have been sent to a forensic laboratory, rejecting claims that they had entered the forest searching for cattle.The Opposition continued to question the use of force, calling the firing a “murderous act”.Leader of Opposition R Ashoka demanded a judicial inquiry and Rs 1 crore compensation for each victim’s family. He also sought the govt’s response to Tamil Nadu CM Joseph Vijay’s condemnation of the incident and his statement that the forest department’s explanation was not acceptable. “I am making an official statement on the entire episode now. On what basis did the CM of Tamil Nadu say that the forest department’s explanation is not acceptable?,” Reddy said.The govt said seven anti-poaching camps were ransacked following the incident and an FIR had been registered over the damage.Eom
