Anthony Sami, John Rose Peter and Kumar were shot dead by Karnataka Forest Department personnel on 15 August. CM Vijay called it a massacre; the Assembly has moved a call-attention motion seeking a high-level probe.
The killing of three Tamil men by Karnataka Forest Department personnel was raised in the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly on Tuesday, with members moving a call-attention motion demanding a high-level inquiry into the firing.
Anthony Sami, John Rose Peter and Kumar — Tamils who lived in villages in Hanur taluk of Chamarajanagar district in Karnataka — were shot dead in the early hours of 15 August in the Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary area, at Maria Mangala Beat near Shagya village. A fourth man, Mahima Das, escaped and was later taken to hospital with injuries.
Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay condemned the killings in a social media post on 16 August, calling the incident a massacre and demanding an honest investigation.
He added that the explanation offered by the Karnataka Forest Department was unacceptable, and that an honest investigation should be conducted into the incident.
| Karnataka Forest Department | Families and Tamil Nadu |
|---|---|
| Personnel were conducting an anti-poaching operation after information about suspected poaching | The department's explanation has been rejected as unacceptable |
| The group is alleged to have opened fire first; personnel fired in self-defence | A high-level, impartial inquiry has been demanded |
| Firearms and two bags containing wild animal meat were said to be recovered | Families and villagers have protested, seeking justice |
Hanur police have registered an FIR against the forest officials involved, under Section 103(1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. Karnataka Chief Minister D. K. Shivakumar has ordered a magistrate-led inquiry into the shootout, saying the complete facts would emerge only after the probe.
“Several witnesses have been questioned, and items and guns have been seized,” Shivakumar said. “The media is broadcasting various stories. Some people have been arrested, and the bodies are being taken for post-mortem.”
Protests were held in Chamarajanagar and Mysuru, and tension prevailed in Hanur as villagers and family members of the deceased gathered in the Datti forest area.
The incident has drawn comparisons with the Seshachalam encounter of April 2015 in Andhra Pradesh, in which 20 Tamil men — described by authorities as red sanders smugglers — were shot dead by a task force. That case generated years of litigation and inquiry, and remains a reference point in Tamil Nadu whenever Tamil workers are killed by security or forest personnel in a neighbouring state.
The deaths come at a period of already strained relations between the two states. Tamil Nadu is simultaneously pursuing Karnataka in the Supreme Court over Cauvery releases, where the court directed Karnataka on 17 August to ensure compliance with the Cauvery Water Management Authority's directions, with the matter posted to 24 August.
The Assembly's call-attention motion seeks a high-level probe into the firing. The magisterial inquiry ordered by Karnataka and the FIR against the forest officials both remain at an early stage, and the circumstances of the shooting have not been independently established.
Hanur Karnataka Tamil Nadu Assembly Inter-State August 18, 2026