Civil rights activists are in the grip of terror in Andhra Pradesh. Scores of them are on the hitlist of killer gangs freely roaming the state. Operating in the names of Nallamalla Black Cobras, Kakatiya Cobras, Naxalite Victims Association and Narsa Cobras, these gangs have already killed four activists, made abortive attempts and issued countless threats to many others. Those targeted include lawyers, writers and left-wing intellectuals. The police is yet to make a single arrest in connection with the incidents so far.

The suspected assailants, former Naxalites, allegedly enjoy the support of police. “The attempt to create private militias to attack the activists of the legal fronts of the Naxalite parties and civil rights activists is nothing new. Initially, policemen in disguise carried out the attacks and threats. Now they are using former Naxalites to do the job. Some of them were encouraged to form paramilitary gangs after they developed differences and left the organisation. Some were contacted when they were still in the party and paid to kill their comrades and come out with weapons and form counter-insurgent gangs,” says K. Balagopal, general secretary of Human Rights Forum. The Forum has, in fact, made a fairly exhaustive study of the fratricidal war unfolding in the state. Similar tactics had been used overtly by the Jammu and Kashmir government to fight terrorism in the state when it created the Ikhwan force manned by surrendered militants.

Some of the former Naxalites are dreaded gangsters (see box). Kathula Sammaiah, for instance. He was a terror till he died in a plane crash in 2001. “He was one of those who could organise a press conference with a firearm in his hand,” says KG Kannabiran, national president of the People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL), adding, “The situation in Andhra is as bad as Bihar, with mafia killings going on, but for some reason it has not caught national attention.” Nayeemuddin and Jadala Nagaraju are the most dreaded in the business now. Known to operate under bizarre names, activists suspect their hand in the recent murders and threats issued in the name of Cobras.

State Director General of Police (DGP) Swaranjit Sen however reportedly remarked that police were not snake charmers to catch cobras (see interview). His remarks have sparked angry reactions from activists whose lives are under threat. “All these gangs, whether they call themselves Cobras, Green Tigers or by any other name, are sponsored by the state. They are acting on instructions from state police,” says cultural activist and revolutionary singer Gaddar. In last few months, Gaddar has received letters from the Cobras asking him to stop praising the Maoists or face death. The letters have one message: “You escaped death last time. This time you will not be lucky. We will cut you into pieces if you don’t stop your singing.” In 1997, Gaddar survived an attempt on his life when unidentified gunmen shot at him. The Green Tigers owned up responsibility for the attack, but police have still not made any breakthrough in the case. This doesn’t surprise activists, who allege that Green Tigers is a front for policemen. They point out that Javed, a suspended police constable, was arrested in Warangal for threatening activists in the name of Haribhushan, leader of Green Tigers. He was arrested in 2004 around the time when the government and the Maoists were engaged in a dialogue. “It was the only action ever taken against any person associated with these gangs,” says Balagopal.

The talks, however, ended in failure and the government reimposed the ban on the Maoists in 2005. “The police did not want the talks to succeed. They were unnerved by the success of the Guthikondabilam public meeting of the People’s War (now merged with Maoist Communist Centre of India and known as the CPI-Maoist) in which over six lakh people attended,” says Kannabiran.

Medium Is The Message: A pro-Naxal cultural troupe performs at a public meeting
Photos Prajatantra
The recent spate of killings and threats against activists began as retaliation for Congress legislator Narsi Reddy’s murder on Independence Day last year by suspected Maoists. Two days later, a statement was published in the press in the name of Narsa Cobras containing a list of activists who have been marked for killing. A week later, K. Kanakachari, an executive member of the Patriotic and Democratic Movement, whose name figured in the hitlist, was hacked to death in Mahbubnagar. The Cobras warned activists to stay away from his funeral procession. Those who defied were included in a revised hitlist issued by the Cobras.

On September 10, Mannem Prasad, district president of the Struggle Committee for Annihilation of Caste, was murdered in broad daylight in Singarayakonda, Prakasam district. Nallamalla Black Cobras claimed responsibility for his murder. On September 14, Kilinga Rao was killed in Ambatipalli in Karimnagar district, and on November 28, Munaiah, a dalit activist of Democratic Teachers Federation (DTF) was brutally hacked to death at Alipur in Mahabubnagar district.

Though the murdered activists were all members of legal organisations, they were not in the good books of the police because of their vigilant human rights work. In its report on the series of murders, based on a field visit, the All India Fact-Finding Team, comprising activists from different parts of the country, notes that police had detained two activists while they were waiting to receive Mannem Prasad’s body. When the duo explained to police that they belonged to Mannem’s outfit, the cops reportedly shot back that their organisation was nothing but a front of the Maoists.

On November 23, at about 10.30 pm, unidentified persons attacked the house of Professor S. Seshaiah, general secretary of Andhra Pradesh Civil Liberties Committee (APCLC) in Anantapur district and set fire to the car parked in the portico and damaged furniture lying on the verandah. Seshaiah and his family members had a narrow escape as the assailants could not break open the iron-grilled door. The police found a letter outside the house the next morning purportedly signed by the secretary of Rayalaseema Tigers claiming responsibility for the attack.

A Law Unto Law: Does Nagaraju, who killed an entire PWG squad, enjoy police patronage?

Cultural activist Gaddar has received letters from the Cobras to stop praising Maoists. In 1997, Gaddar survived an attempt by the Green Tigers, allegedly a front for policemen
Seshaiah believes the police planted the letter to fend off allegations that they were behind the attack. “Several people visited my house the whole night and the following morning. None of them spotted the letter. Only the police team that arrived at about 11 in the morning found it. It was drizzling the whole night, but the letter was dry. All attacks against the activists are taking place under police guidance. I believe the police wrote the letter and planted it to show that they did not have any hand in the incident,” says Seshaiah.

Threats have been issued to several others. N. Venugopal, a journalist and literary critic, received threatening calls from the Cobras after he moved the Lokayukta — an institution for lodging complaints against public servants — against the home minister, DGP and the Additional DGP (Intelligence) for their failure to act against the Cobras. “The threat from the Cobras clearly established the nexus between public servants and them. There was no way anyone else could have known about my complaint,” says Venugopal.

He then wrote to cm YS Rajasekhara Reddy: “Nallamalla Cobras and Kakatiya Cobras, apparently sponsored and maintained by your government’s police department, seem to be after my blood, making three threatening phone calls within the last four days. I would like to propose to you that it would be better if they kill me right in your office to enhance the prestige of our state in maintaining law and order and dealing with difference of opinion.” Venugopal says the calls stopped coming after that.

The Cobras are not sparing women activists either. On August 28 last year, Rammohan Kobra, who claimed to be the secretary of Narsa Cobra state committee, in a press release demanded the activists of Andhra Pradesh Chaitanya Mahila Samaakhya (APCMS), a federation of women’s organisations, to resign from their posts or face execution. The next day, Sujatha, APCMS secretary, got a call on her mobile from one Ravi, who said he was calling on behalf of Nallamalla Black Cobras. When Sujatha asked him what he wanted, he replied, “Your death” and hung up. The calls persisted for some time. “We informed the police and the state human rights commission but to no use. Police could not nab the culprits, but the calls ceased,” says B. Jyothi, president of APCMS, another target of Cobras.

How the threat calls ceased to Venugopal and Jyothi remains a mystery. It has only reinforced the suspicion that the Cobras are actually doing someone’s missive, possibly the police’s. Balagopal has reasons to believe so. “Often, the abusive phone calls made by the Cobras has revealed awareness of facts that only the police know. Secondly, threats in the name of Cobras have been issued after injury or insult caused to the police or to their old favourites like Nayeemuddin. Thirdly, the police has been gleefully inactive in the face of blatant violence in the name of the Cobras.”

Civil rights activists had been targeted in the state earlier, but never in such gruesome manner. “The recent murders have been most brutal. Victims have been axed and the axe is left implanted in the victim’s body. Clearly, the intention is to terrify the activists, so that they would not stir out of their homes,” says Kannabiran.

T. Purushotham of APCLC, who had exposed several fake encounters, was killed in 2000, and a year later, Azam Ali of the same organisation was killed. In January 1985, Gopi Rajanna, an APCLC activist, was shot dead at Jagtial in Karim Nagar district. In September 1985, A. Ramanantham, APCLC vice president, was shot dead in his clinic at Warangal. In September 1986, J. Lakshma Reddy, state executive member of the APCLC was shot dead and in December 1991, N. Prabakar Reddy, convenor of Warangal district committee of APCLC met with the same fate. “Barring Gopi Rajanna, who was shot dead by RSS members, the other three were shot dead by policemen. No arrest was made in any of the cases, and the cases have now been closed as undetected,” says Balagopal. If the Cobras are not nabbed, more precious lives are sure to be lost, and as activists say, the state government will be held responsible for it.