Visakhapatnam: Withdraw false cases, demands HRF

Visakhapatnam: The accusations contained in the two FIRs at Munchingput police station in Visakhapatnam district and Piduguralla in Guntur district of Andhra Pradesh against VS Krishna of Human Rights Forum (HRF) and functionaries of several other rights, literary, and Dalit organisations is clearly an exercise in intimidation to stifle lawful dissent and protest, the HRF representatives mentioned. They said the content of the FIRs was nothing but a litany of lies.

In the Munchingput FIR, AP and Telangana Coordination Committee member of HRF VS Krishna is accused of influencing the Vakapalli rape survivors to depose falsely against the policemen. This, the HRF members felt, is an atrocious allegation.

Thirteen accused police personnel are presently on trial. While two of the Vakapalli women had died in the intervening years, the remaining nine came to Visakhapatnam and deposed in court.

The trial is continuing in the SC, ST Special Court at Visakhapatnam. HRF, along with several other organisations have provided them food and shelter to be able to depose in the trial. It is because of this solidarity and sustained rights activism that the police are now seeking to intimidate VS Krishna in what we believe to be a clear case of vindictiveness, they stated.

In the recent past, HRF AP and TS coordination committee members S Jeevan Kumar and A Chandrasekhar said the UAPA was invoked against three HRF functionaries - Telangana State HRF vice-president Atram Bhujana Rao, Adilabad district HRF president A Suguna and HRF Komaram Bheem Asifabad district president Kanaka Venkatesh - in a FIR lodged at Tadvai police station in Mulug district of Telangana on November 2, 2020.

The committee members said the HRF will continue to work for the protection of constitutionally/internationally recognised rights of the people and demanded that the 'fabricated accusations' in the FIRs be immediately withdrawn.