The incident garnered widespread attention especially after videos of the assault were widely shared on social media platforms.
Screengrab of villagers clashing.
As many as 21 villagers were detained after they clashed with police following a row between groups from two neighbouring villages in Telangana’s Khammam district on Sunday, 31 March, said a senior official.
The villagers — belonging to Buggapadu and Chandrayapalem — had reportedly indulged in a verbal fight over the alleged encroachment of forest land in the Chandrayapalem forest area.
Police were alerted to the situation and Sathupally Police Station Circle Inspector (CI) T Kiran rushed to the spot.
According to the cops, the CI mediated between the two groups of villagers, after which one group left.
However, before forest officials and other police personnel reached the spot, one group attacked the cops present there, resulting in injuries to some personnel, a senior official told South First.
The incident garnered widespread attention especially after videos of the assault were widely shared on social media platforms.
In the viral videos being shared on platforms like X (formerly Twitter), police officials are seen helping the CI after the assault. Meanwhile, the villagers were seen screaming and assaulting other police officials with sticks.
In the second video, Kiran was seen running to sit in a vehicle but two women ran behind him and accosted him. They were then seen thrashing him as he lay on the ground.
Police officials alleged some of them were pushed aside and some were allegedly hit with sticks by the villagers.
The situation was now under control, said a police official, adding that they had picked up 21 villagers who would be booked under stringent sections.
#Telangana: Twenty-one villagers were detained after clashing with police following a dispute between groups from two neighboring villages in Telangana's Khammam.
In total, over 150 people, including Tribals from Chandrapalan village and villagers from outside the area, were… pic.twitter.com/ucHNezwn8w
— South First (@TheSouthfirst) March 31, 2024
A forest official informed South First that approximately 150 individuals — including tribals and villagers from Chandrayapalem and neighbouring villages — gathered on Sunday to dispute the ownership of a piece of forest land in a village in the Sathupalli Mandal.
As tensions escalated into a law-and-order issue, police were called in. When they intervened, several officers were allegedly assaulted by members of the group.
The forest official said, “The tribals a few months ago sought permission for emptying the forest land, and forest officials have counselled them to let the matter go. Today being Sunday, we were surprised at how these many individuals gathered. We suspect that instigators influenced the individuals.”
He added: “The Forest Department is initiating an inquiry into the matter and is actively seeking to identify the instigators.”
He also said: “Native tribals typically refrain from such confrontations, indicating the involvement of individuals from neighbouring villages.”
South First contacted around 10 officials of the Sathupally Police Station, and all of them said an FIR was being filed, while their colleagues had been taken to a nearby hospital for first aid and treatment.
They added that the hunt for more people was underway, and that they were collecting evidence to take all the villagers before the district magistrate on Monday.
(Edited by Arkadev Ghoshal)
May 21, 2024
May 21, 2024
May 21, 2024
May 21, 2024
May 21, 2024
May 21, 2024
