Editing 2015 sandalwood smugglers encounter in Andhra Pradesh (section)

== Investigation ==
The post-mortem team of five doctors at the Venkateswara Ramnarain Ruia Government Hospital, however, said the men "were shot at close range".<ref name=outlook-blood>{{cite web|url=http://www.outlookindia.com/article/The-Colour-Of-Cold-Blood/293986|title=The Colour Of Cold Blood - Madhavi Tata - Apr 20,2015|work=outlookindia.com}}</ref>
On 10 April 2015, Hyderabad High Court ordered the Andhra Pradesh government to register a case of murder for the killing of 20 alleged red sandalwood smugglers. "Why should not a case of unnatural death under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code be filed?" the court asked.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/andhra-pradesh-red-sandalwood-smugglers-encounter-high-court/1/429501.html|title=Andhra encounter: File case of murder against cops, says High Court|work=India Today}}</ref><ref>[http://www.deccanchronicle.com/150410/nation-current-affairs/article/preserve-bodies-6-%E2%80%98smugglers%E2%80%99-killed-ap-encounter-madras-hc Chittoor killings: Hyderabad High Court asks Andhra govt why no case for unnatural death of 20 'smugglers']</ref>

A fact-finding team led by the Coordination of Democratic Rights Organisation (CDRO), after visiting the spot on 11 April 2015, maintained that there were several inconsistencies in the version put forward by officials and termed the killing of 20 red sanders coolies as a 'fake encounter' and sought a [[Central Bureau of Investigation]] (CBI) inquiry into the issue. "There were no visible signs of conflict at the location. The distance between bodies of coolies is less than 10 feet and blood marks were not found elsewhere. It is surprising that there were no injuries, when the task force men have opened fire on a group of 150 coolies," they said.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/andhra-pradesh/seshachalam-encounter-rights-activists-visit-spot/article7094128.ece?ref=tpnews|title='Seshachalam encounter': rights activists visit spot|work=The Hindu}}</ref>

Three men, who survived the alleged 'encounter' testified to the NHRC on how their friends and family members were wrongly detained and later shot dead.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rediff.com/news/report/seshachalam-encounter-witnesses-reveal-what-happened/20150413.htm|title=Seshachalam 'encounter': Witnesses reveal what happened|date=13 April 2015|work=Rediff}}</ref>

An eight-member fact-finding team found instances where the bodies of some victims in the encounter were brutally disfigured and tortured. One of the members of this team and former member of NHRC, Satyabrata Pal, said that he has seen hundreds of cases while serving as a member in the NHRC for five years but rarely had he come across as brutal and as inhuman an act as the killings. Many members found this encounter is fake because it does not have any encounter signs.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/chennai/Bodies-of-Woodcutters-Mutilated-Says-8-member-Fact-finding-Team/2015/04/16/article2766517.ece |title=Bodies of Woodcutters Mutilated, Says 8-member Fact-finding Team |work=The New Indian Express|accessdate=16 April 2015}}</ref>

On 17 April, Hyderabad High Court ordered the re-[[postmortem]] of five more victims and Saikumar of the alleged encounter, it also directed the [[Osmania Medical College]] principal to form a team of not less than three doctors to conduct the postmortems in [[Tamil Nadu]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.newindianexpress.com/states/andhra_pradesh/HC-Orders-Second-Autopsy-of-Five-More-Encounter-Victims/2015/04/18/article2770068.ece |title=HC Orders Second Autopsy of Five More Encounter Victims |work=The New Indian Express |accessdate=18 April 2015}}</ref>

[[National Commission for Scheduled Tribes]] (NCST) vice chairperson Ravi Thakur, visited the site, with forest department officials, where the 20 Tamil Nadu woodcutters were shot dead, and expressed dissatisfaction over the failure of officials in explaining the reason behind the massacre.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.newindianexpress.com/states/andhra_pradesh/ST-Commission-Miffed-at-AP-officials-Response/2015/04/18/article2770060.ece |title=ST Commission Miffed at AP officials' Response |work=The New Indian Express |accessdate=18 April 2015}}</ref>

The NHRC decided to send its team for investigation where killing happened and favoured a judicial enquiry by Andhra Pradesh Government into firing incident<ref>{{cite web|url=http://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-others/nhrc-favours-judicial-enquiry-into-chittoor-firing/|title=NHRC favours judicial enquiry into Chittoor firing|date=23 April 2015|work=The Indian Express}}</ref>

The Hyderabad High Court had directed the Andhra Pradesh Police to furnish the case diary before the court, relating to the case registered in connection with the killing of the 20 people in police firing. Expressing dissatisfaction over the case diary that was produced by the investigating officer to the court, it ordered Special Investigation Team(SIT) to be constituted to probe the killing and wants SIT to complete its investigation in 60 days and submit a report to the court.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/hyderabad/Chittoor-Firing-HC-Asks-SIT-to-Complete-Probe-in-60-Days/2015/04/28/article2787556.ece|title=Chittoor Firing: HC Asks SIT to Complete Probe in 60 Days|work=The New Indian Express}}</ref>

K. Kranthi Chaitanya, State executive member of the Andhra Pradesh Civil Liberties Committee (APCLC) stated that "We have always maintained that it was a fake encounter and that the workers were brought to the spot and killed. The forensic report, call data records, SIT report, etc. all prove our stand,".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/andhra-pradesh/cops-mum-over-seshachalam-encounter/article7229113.ece|title=Cops mum over Seshachalam 'encounter'|author=A.D. Rangarajan|work=The Hindu}}</ref>