Bhatta villagers on Tuesday said officials of the state government were lying that only two protesters were killed and no one had been missing since the May 7 clashes.
They said hundreds of farmers were nowhere to be found, several were killed and their bodies burnt. Amid police presence in the area, eerie silence continues to grip households.
"How can we lodge complaints before the policemen who committed atrocities? Those who flee fearing police action don’t return immediately but stay in touch with their families via phone or other means. But we have not heard from dozens of them since the clashes broke out," the villagers said. They also dismissed the claims of the two officials who said the police were not against the villagers but "a handful of anti-socials" and the police did not commit any atrocity.
Sardari Devi, an elderly woman, said: "Police ransacked my house. My infant grandchildren were shocked into silence." "The village kept burning till midnight. The tears of women have not stopped," she added.
Poonam and her husband Kapil said: "The police trained guns at our seven-year-old son Nishant to find out about the elders. When women tried to save him, they were also beaten up." Villagers said Jugal Kishore was one of those who, despite being sick and bed-ridden, was thrashed by policemen. His daughter was also dragged and beaten up.
"If Rahul Gandhi has accused police of killing and raping farmers, besides burning their bodies, he has done so on the basis of information provided by us," the villagers said.
{{/usCountry}}"If Rahul Gandhi has accused police of killing and raping farmers, besides burning their bodies, he has done so on the basis of information provided by us," the villagers said.
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