Three Tamil men killed in Karnataka forest shootout, political row erupts

Three alleged poachers were killed in a shootout with Forest Department personnel in the Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary in Chamarajanagar district on August 15. The Karnataka Forest Department says the men opened fire first and that rifles and deer meat were seized from the scene. One person escaped.

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay has rejected the poaching explanation, called the incident a massacre, and demanded a high-level probe. Karnataka Chief Minister DK Shivakumar has ordered a magistrate-led inquiry and said compensation will be paid to the victims' families. The Leader of Opposition in Karnataka, R Ashoka, has demanded a judicial inquiry.

An FIR has been registered against forest officials under Section 103(1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (murder) based on a complaint from the wife of one of the deceased. The Karnataka government says the facts of the shootout will be established through the ongoing inquiry.