In a landmark verdict, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) found the Special Task Force (STF) charged to capture now-dead criminal Veerappan guilty of perpetrating atrocities on civilians and order an interim compensation of Rs. 2.8 crore. Accepting the petition filed by 89 people who claimed to be victim of the Joint STF of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka to capture the criminal, the NHRC found sufficient evidence of harassment of villagers and tribals in border areas of the two states.

The NHRC had instituted a commission led by former Karnataka High Court justice A.J. Sadashiva and former CBI Director C.V. Narasimhan to investigate the alleged excesses. The commission recorded the statements of 243 people including 193 alleged victims, four non-government organizations, and 38 police officers and submitted a report on Dec 1, 2003