Andhra Pradesh

Martyrs’ day rescheduled

In memory: Gonds pay homage every year to this martyrs’ column in Indervelli of Adilabad district.

ADILABAD: The Gonds will be paying homage at the Indervelli martyrs’ column on April 25 this year instead of April 21, in view of the imposition of prohibitory orders in the area. The decision to defer paying respect to those who died in the infamous Indervelli firing of April 20, 1981, was taken by the Ginnera Rai Centre.

A martyr’s column in fading red stands forlorn at the site of the police firing reminding everyone about the unpleasant incident.

Nearly twenty-eight years ago, the police had opened fire on an assemblage of members of the Gond tribe at the place amid circumstances that will always remain disputed. The death toll, also disputed, was 17 on official record while the unofficial version puts it more than 100. A large number of Gonds from nearby villages had turned up at Indervelli on that fateful Monday for a public meeting organised by the Rythu Coolie Sangham. There will also be a veil of mystery on the reason that prompted the policemen to open fire on the tribal gathering. According to official version, it was the assault on a policeman by a Gond woman that led to the firing. However, the woman in question, one Isrubai had disputed this contention until her death in 2005. A thought has to be spared over the continuation of prohibitory orders despite the event being so far removed from present times. Union Minister of State for Commerce Jairam Ramesh wanted to have a park near the column to make it memorable without being painful.

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