Congress MP Karti Chidambaram has urged caution on the politically sensitive issue of three men’s deaths in a forest in Karnataka and said the Karnataka government should first conduct a probe before political conclusions about the identity or the circumstances of the shooting can be drawn.
As to the assertion that the three men were killed because they were Tamil, Chidambaram said, “Let the Karnataka govt investigate the matter before we react.” And forest officials would not ordinarily ask people for an ethnicity or linguistic certificate during a forest operation and therefore cautioned against immediately concluding that the men were targeted because they were Tamil.
The comments come in the wake of increasing political tension following the shooting in the Hanur forest area in Chamarajanagar district, near the Karnataka-Tamil Nadu border, on August 15. Three people— Anthony Swamy, John Rose Peter and Sebastian David Kumar— were killed in a clash between Karnataka Forest Department personnel. Another man with them survived.
The Forest Department has said its personnel encountered suspected poachers during a search operation and fired after the group allegedly opened fire or there was a flash from a weapon. Karnataka Forest Minister Ramalinga Reddy during the assembly said the forest personnel fired from a department shotgun during the encounter.
“Let the Karnataka govt enquire into the matter before we react.
— News Arena India (@NewsArenaIndia) August 24, 2026
The forest officials won't ask for your ethnicity or linguistic certificate, so we can't say that Tamils were shot.”
- Congress MP Karti Chidambaram about 'killing' of three Tamils in Karnataka forest pic.twitter.com/iCU2NwQQcH
But the account has been disputed by families of the deceased and Tamil Nadu politicians. There are questions about whether the three men committed poaching or had gone into the forest looking for cattle. The situation has only increased since the victims were from villages in the area and Tamil Nadu political parties have referred to them as Tamils.
The Karnataka government has already ordered a magisterial inquiry into the deaths. Police also registered an FIR against forest personnel under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita's murder provision after a complaint filed by the wife of one of the deceased.
A few preliminary forensic findings have added another layer to the controversy. The Indian Express reported that post-mortem findings indicated that the fatal shotgun fire was from a close range, but investigators would need ballistic and crime-scene evidence to establish the precise circumstances and firing distance.
The issue has also become a political flashpoint in Tamil Nadu. Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay had condemned the deaths and called for a comprehensive and independent investigation, and opposition parties and other political parties have advocated for stronger investigations, including an investigation by the CBI.
Karti Chidambaram’s comments in this regard are particularly striking as they are about waiting for an official investigation before coming to an ethnic perspective on the incident. He does not dismiss the deaths, but he argues that the facts surrounding the shooting should be established first.
The comments are likely to spark further discussion because the case is at the crossroads of public safety, forest enforcement, alleged poaching, community identity and interstate political sensitivities. The Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary and surrounding forest areas have historically been challenged by poaching and other forest crimes, so forest personnel and residents are highly sensitive to such situations.
But the basic questions remain whether the three men were poaching, what exactly happened when the forest team encountered them, whether the use of force was justified, and whether any wrongdoing happened during the operation.
The ongoing inquiry will be critical in answering those questions. And until its findings are known, Chidambaram’s call for restraint underscores the importance of establishing whether the facts are true or not and distinguishing them from political claims on the tragic deaths.
