Twelve of the 13
protesters
killed when police opened fire on a demonstration against
Vedanta's copper smelter in southern
India in May were hit
by bullets in the
head or
chest, and
half of those were shot
from behind, autopsy reports show.
Two others died after bullets pierced the sides of their heads, according
to the reports produced
by forensic medicine experts
from several government hospitals and reviewed
by media. They have not been previously published.
In the case of the youngest
to be
killed, a bullet entered the back of 17-year-old J. Snowlin's
head and exited through her mouth, the autopsy found.
"The deceased would appear
to have died of cardio-pulmonary arrest due
to firearm bullet injury
to the back of the neck," forensic medicine experts who examined Snowlin's body wrote.
When media visited her family, they said they had not collected the teenager's autopsy report. "We are continuing
to exist, that's it," said her mother.
Indian police rules allow the use of live ammunition
to quell civil unrest, but stipulate the response should be proportionate and officers should not shoot
to kill. Police Standing Orders for Tamil Nadu, the state where the shootings took place, say that, when using firearms, "aim should be kept low, preferably well below the waist level, and directed against the most threatening part of the mob".
The incident was the deadliest at an environmental protest in
India in a decade. A working group of United Nations' human rights experts in May condemned the "apparent excessive and disproportionate use of lethal force
by police".
Federal police are investigating the shootings, which took place as
protesters were marching
to the local government headquarters in the port city of
Thoothukudi, demanding that a copper smelter controlled
by London-headquartered
Vedanta Resources be shut for allegedly polluting the environment.
No police officers have been arrested or charged in connection with the killings. In a statement following the incident the Tamil Nadu state government, which is responsible for
the police, said: "Due
to unavoidable circumstances, we had
to take action
to bring the situation under control."
The
Thoothukudi district administration and state police officials did not respond
to emails seeking comments on the autopsy reports. Federal police investigating the deaths did not respond
to requests for comment on the autopsy findings.
Vedanta did not respond
to a request for comment. The company, which had no involvement in the shootings, has previously expressed regret over the deaths at the protest, which it call "absolutely unfortunate".
Four senior police and two government officials who were present on the day told
Reuters in June they were forced
to fire live ammunition as the crowd turned violent and threatened a neighbouring Vedanta employees' apartment building.
DETAIL OF DEATHS
Among the eight people
killed
from bullets entering their
head or body
from behind or the side, 40-year-old Jansi, who like many people in Tamil Nadu goes
by just one name, was shot a few hundred metres away
from her house in a narrow street close
to Thoothukudi's seafront. She was shot through the ear, the report into her death showed. A bullet went through the forehead of 34-year-old Mani Rajan. "The deceased would appear
to have died of penetrating injury
to the brain due
to the firearm bullet injury
to the right side of forehead," Mani's autopsy report said.
The dead also included a man in his 50s, six men in their 40s, and three men in their early 20s.
The
head of the forensic science department at the Thoothukudi Medical College, where the autopsies were conducted, declined
to comment, as did two of the principal examiners.
Media contacted 11 of the 13 families or friends of those
killed, 10 of whom said they were not pursuing any legal action. One of the 11 said he was in touch with a lawyer and wanted justice, but did not elaborate further. Two of the families could not be reached for comment.
Authorities in Tamil Nadu ordered the permanent closure of the Vedanta smelter on environmental grounds immediately after the shootings at the May 22 protest. That order was overturned
by a ruling
from
India's green court on Dec. 15. Vedanta, controlled
by billionaire Anil Agarwal, has always denied damaging the environment.
MINIMUM FORCE
The shootings are being investigated
by a court-mandated commission as well as the federal police. Officials familiar with the investigations said they were not likely
to conclude "any time soon".
Fifteen police weapons were discharged in total, including three self-loading rifles (SLR), according
to a state government documents submitted
to the investigation commission and reviewed
by media.
Of 69 live bullets used, 30 were fired
from the three SLRs, according
to the documents. Police fired an additional four rounds
from .303 rifles and 12
shots
from .410 weapons.
The Police Standing Orders, an exhaustive manual on police action, recommends the use of .303 and .410 rifles as a last resort against violent crowds.
Unlike the colonial era .303 and .410, the SLR is modern rifle capable of continuous fire, said Jacob Punnose, former police chief of the neighbouring Kerala state.
"There is no illegality per se," he said, referring
to the use of SLRs in such circumstances. "But it definitely goes against principle of minimum force."