Families of victims of naxal attack in Maha's Gadchiroli should be 'suitably compensation': NHRC

The National Human Rights Commission Thursday condemned the killing of police personnel and a civilian in a naxal attack in Maharashtra's Gadchiroli district and said the aggrieved families should be "suitably compensated". Sixteen persons, including 15 policemen, were killed Wednesday after naxals blew up their vehicle in the district.

The commission, in a statement, also said it believes that such attacks against security personnel on duty should be stopped and such incidents were a grave violation of human rights. "The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) condemns the killing of 15 Maharashtra Police personnel and a civilian driver in the Left Wing Extremism-affected Kurkheda tehsil of Gadchiroli district of Maharashtra yesterday," the rights panel said.

The NHRC said the country's strong democratic values and institutions provide "enough space" to people with "divergent views" to function through non-violent means and to endear themselves to the mainstream of social, cultural and political life. It said that "any struggle renders itself meaningless, the moment it turns violent, leading to grave violation of human rights".

The NHRC said the "supreme sacrifice: made by all those martyred in this dastardly and cowardly attack would not go in vain and that the aggrieved families should be suitably compensated".