The Madras High Court has dismissed the appeals of 215 government officials convicted for rape, assault, and violence on the residents of Tamil Nadu’s Vachathi, a tribal hamlet around 50 kms from Dharmapuri, in 1992. Delivering the verdict on Friday, September 29, Justice P Velmurugan directed the government to pay Rs 10 lakh each to the 18 survivors who were raped by the officials. Additionally, he also directed the state to provide the women with suitable government jobs. In case any of the survivors are not eligible for government employment due to age restrictions, monetary arrangements for their self-employment are to be ensured.
The police excess took place in June 1992, when 133 forest officials, 108 police officers, and six revenue officers entered Vachathi and attacked the residents.They that Vachathi’s residents were protecting the notorious forest bandit Veerappan and assisting him in smuggling activities. Eighteen women were tortured and raped by the officials, while several men were beaten up. Their houses were looted and their cattle were slaughtered for food. More than 100 people from the village, including women and children, were arrested and jailed for three months.
The brutal violence came to light only after some members of the CPI(M) learned about the incident from a few residents who had fled to the Chitteri hills after being released from jail. A writ petition was then filed in the Madras High Court in 1992, and the case was transferred to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) three years later. In 1996, the CBI found all 269 government officials guilty and they were charge-sheeted. However, the then ruling All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) filed an appeal against the CBI inquiry and it was dismissed.
Read: Three decades after police brutality, what Vachathi wants is better education and jobs
Close to two decades after the incident, in September 2011, the District and Sessions Court in Krishnagiri found the surviving 215 officials, including four Indian Forest Service (IFS) officers, guilty. The rest of the accused had passed away. The accused were sentenced to imprisonment with punishments ranging from one to ten years.
Judge Velmurugan visited Vachathi on March 4, 2023, before delivering a verdict on the criminal appeals pending since 2011 against the sentence conferred on the convicts. During his visit, he briefly interacted with the residents, and visited the spots where the women were gathered before they were assaulted, and the lake near which they were raped. He briefly visited the forest adjacent to the village as well.