The Jharkhand Janadhikar Mahasabha, a coalition of human rights organisations, has accused police of arresting six tribal youths last month on false charges of possessing bomb materials and being Maoists.

It said the youths, who were arrested in Chaibasa town, had gone there to repair traditional drums for the Maghe Porob, the biggest festival of Ho tribals in February.

The Mahasabha on Monday tweeted a letter written by the gram sabha (village council) of Tumbahaka under Rengdahatu panchayat in the Tonto police station area of West Singhbhum district on March 2 about the police arresting six youths and producing them before the media on February 25 on charges of being Maoists and showing recovery of two detonators and gelatin sticks.

The letter has been tagged to Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren too. The Tumbahaka gram sabha letter was signed by 54 villagers and addressed to West Singhbhum deputy commissioner Ananya Mittal, West Singhbhum superintendent of police Ashutosh Shekhar, and the National Human Rights Commission.

“Four youths of the Tumbahaka village namely Dubraj Hembrom, Mangata Hembrom, Tumbe Purty and Palsingh Hembrom, and youths from neighbouring villagers had gone to Chaibasa town (West Singhbhum district headquarter) on February 20 to repair six madals (traditional drums) for the festivity. While returning home on February 21, they decided to stay at the house of a relative of a villager in Chaibasa market as it was too late,” the letter states.

The letter alleges that the police picked up the youths on February 22 morning from the house and took them away after thrashing.

The villagers came to know from the newspaper on February 25 that the police had labelled them as Maoists and also showed detonators and gelatin as recovered from them.

The letter also alleges thatMangata Hembrom, Turi Deoand Champai Bahanda could not be traced and they have not even been presented before the magistrate so far.

“It seems they have been illegally confined somewhere. All the six youths do not have any criminal antecedents and used to eke out a living by farming in the village,” the letter alleges.

The letter claims that the primary school and the anganwadi centre in the village have also been closed since January as the teachers do not turn up allegedly because of fear of security personnel.

West Singhbhum SP Ashutosh Shekhar refuted the allegations and said: “We had been tracing these youths for a long time. They indeed came from the village with an alibi to repair their drums but also had detonators and gelatins. We have ample evidence of their involvement in Maoist activities.”