A young woman from the Kallar community in Tamil Nadu’s Thanjavur district was allegedly killed by her family for marrying a Dalit man. This incident took place on January 3, Indian Express reports
The woman victim, reports The Indian Express, 19-year-old Aishwarya from Neyvaviduthi in Pattukottai, had fallen in love with Naveen, a 19-year-old Dalit man from Poovaloor village, Thanjavur. Naveen belongs to the Devendra Kula Vellalar community, a Scheduled Caste, while Aishwarya hails from the Kallar (backward) community, a dominant caste and a subgroup of the politically influential Thevar community.
A senior police officer familiar with the case said their love story began in their school days. Naveen, after completing a diploma in mechanical engineering, secured employment in a garments factory in Tirupur. Aishwarya, after her higher secondary education, found work in a power loom in the same town.
“Their relationship blossomed over a year and a half, and they married on December 31, 2023 in a temple in Avarampalayam near Coimbatore. The marriage was not legally valid since Naveen is only 19,” the officer said.
Not quite aware of this legal hitch, the couple rented a house in Veerapandi locality, Tirupur, to start a new life together which, however, was short-lived.
On January 2, seven days ago, Palladam police, acting on a missing person complaint filed by Aishwarya’s father Perumal, unfortunately took her from the couple’s residence. Naveen, her husband, followed the police team and waited outside the station. According to a complaint he filed later, it was around 2 pm that day that Aishwarya’s father Perumal and his associates reached the police station and took her home within 30 minutes.
Naveen was told that she agreed to go with her parents and was also warned against trying to contact her again. Naveen went to his native village that night and he received the news of her death the next morning. Her body had allegedly been cremated hurriedly by relatives.
According to the FIR, she was found dead in her room on January 3. Naveen lodged a complaint on January 7, accusing Aishwarya’s family of murder.
The police have now detained six family members for questioning, including her father, suspecting their involvement in the crime. The case has been registered under sections 302 (punishment for murder) and 201 of the Indian Penal Code, which stipulates punishment for destroying evidence.
According to the Tirupur Superintendent of Police’s office, Aishwarya had agreed to go with her parents after a negotiation with them was held before the police. “Local officers also might have advised her to go with parents considering her age, but not knowing that a tragedy would unfold in the following hours,” an officer said.
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