NHRC Chairman KG Balakrishnan on Monday asked for a recording of the  statements of the two people claiming to be part of the group of woodcutters who were killed in an alleged encounter in Andhra Pradesh.

“I have directed to record their statements and we will take action based on their statements,” Balakrishnan told reporters after meeting the two.

NHRC officials said the two had appeared before the human rights watchdog on their own and were not called. Asked whether the two have sought protection, Balakrishnan said a decision to give them security will be taken after recording their statements.

While the NHRC had issued a suo moto notice to the Andhra Pradesh government on the alleged police action, the panel has received three other complaints demanding action.

Twenty alleged smugglers, most of them from Tamil Nadu, were gunned down in a police operation in Seshachalam hill ranges of Chittoor district in Andhra Pradesh on April 7. The family members of the deceased claim that the incident was a “planned murder” by the AP Police.

Several political parties have questioned the police action, saying labourers and not red sanders smugglers were killed by the Andhra Pradesh Special Task Force.

(With inputs from PTI)