56 held guilty in Dalit massacre case

Guntur, July 31 (UNI) A special court here today convicted 56 accused and acquitted 123 others in the sensational Chundur Dalit Massacre Case in which eight Dalits of Chunduru Village in this district were killed in August 1991.

Of the 56 found guilty, Special Court Judge S Anees convicted 21 under Section 302 of IPC. The judge said the other 35 had abetted the killings and were being heard to decide the quantum of punishment.

The incident which hit the headlines across the nation, occurred on August six, 1991 when eight Dalits were butchered after they stabbed four Reddy landowners to death. Incensed Reddys chased Dalits of Chunduru and neighbouring villages and axed eight of them.

The bodies were then packed in gunny bags and thrown into an irrigation canal.

They were later retrieved and buried in the premises of a private hotel in the village amid vehement protests by upper caste Reddys.

The then government set up a special Sessions court under SC and ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act in 1993.

The case was taken to Andhra Pradesh High Court and the Supreme Court several times over the venue of the trial and the nature of the charges. Finally, as demanded by the Dalits, the court sat in the village Dalit Colony.

Police filed chargesheets against 219 persons and registered 12 FIRs. Thirty-three people died during the trial and seven accused could not be apprehended.

Two police officers who were investigating the case passed away during the trial.

UNI