In yet another sad incident, a 21 year old Dalit man was murdered on Saturday in Tamil Nadu. The man was killed by three upper caste Hindu men for allegedly breaking a plastic tap in their field. The Trichy police have arrested the three men.
The murdered man was identified as Kathiresan who was from Thirupanjili village in Trichy district. Kathiresan worked as an auto driver, was killed over a trivial issue.
Kathiresan’s younger brother Ashok narrated the incident that occurred on Saturday after a man forced himself into Kathiresan’s home.
“He could not find my brother in the house, so he threatened my mother and sister in law. After half an hour, he again came back with his sons, in search of my brother,” Ashok said.
Ashok went on to explain two more men came in shouting and looking for his brother but when they couldn’t find him in the house they went out into the fields. When they found Kathiresan, the three men tied his hands and paraded him to the market where they beat him up with an iron rod.
Ashok further stated, “There were about 15 people who were repeatedly hitting him. My mother and sister in law reached the spot and begged them to let my brother go, but they said they are taking him to the police station. Instead, they took him to their field and murdered him. Police found his body on their field.”
The Executive Director of NGO Evidence, A. Kathir said, “Kathiresan’s mother told us that the caste Hindu men were repeatedly abusing him and asked, ‘Do you think, if you marry a girl from our community, you will become equal to us?’”
Kathiresan married three months ago to a woman named Nandini from the Kallar community. The two had been living at Kathiresan’s family home.
The accused have been named, Thangarasu (57,) along with his two sons Suresh (37) and Baskar (30.)
The FIR has been filed at the Manachanallur police under the IPC Sections 302 relating to murder, 294 (b) singing, reciting or uttering obscene song, ballad or words in public, 342 wrongful confinement, and 506 (iii) criminal intimidation. The FIR has also disclosed multiple sections under the SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Amendment Act 2015. The police are investigating the case.
A. Kathir also said that Kathiresan was an activist fighting for Dalit rights through political activism. The Evidence NGO conducted a survey that showed that 25 Dalit activists have been murdered from July 2016 to June 2017.
A. Kathir said, “These activists have fought for the rights of Dalits – there are many who have fought for inter caste marriages, against untouchability and so on. The reason for the murder is that they work for the public cause. The government must bring in a special act for human rights defenders, the culprits must be punished in such cases. The culprits are arrested, but there is no further trial in such cases.”
