Tiruppur: The frenzied casteist propaganda by caste organisations like the Kongu and Vanniar outfits, besides fringe outfits supplying goons for honour killings, are among the key reasons for the shocking spurt in honour killings in Western Tamil Nadu, say Dalit activists.
The brutal murder of a Dalit youth Shankar in broad daylight at a busy bus stand at Udumalpet on Sunday had sent shock waves across the country.
Four years ago, a Dalit girl, four months pregnant, was murdered in Madathukulam near Udumalpet for marrying an upper caste youth. A Dalit youth was murdered near Avinashi for marrying an upper caste girl.
A Dalit engineering student Gokulraj was murdered and his body was thrown on the railway track in Namakkal district last year. A fringe Kongu outfit leader has been arrested for the murder, clearly indicating the role of the caste outfits in facilitating and accentuating such killings.
“The growth of caste-based organisations, both in upper caste and Dalit communities have created the ground for such honour killing in recent years in the Western districts.
Within last two decades, the caste outfits have grown stronger and made the caste system more strong. It makes people go to any extent including commit honour killing in the name of caste,” point out the activists.
Says R. Kumar, Tirupur district secretary of the ‘Tamil Nadu Theendamai Ozhippu Munnani’: “The people of Western region strongly oppose love marriages. And if a boy is a Dalit, the situation becomes worse. However, they try to separate the couple and the culture of honour killing is slowly growing here due to the caste outfits’ activities. Engaging paid gangs for murder in love marriage issues is totally new here, though it is prevalent in North and Southern districts of Tamil Nadu.”
In this backdrop, Dalit outfits are demanding a new law to protect couples of inter-caste marriage. Kumar further said, “We demand a unique law to protect these couples. In Shankar’s case also, two months ago, their parents kidnapped his wife and later she was returned following police intervention. The couple had already received several threats and it eventually end up with another honour killing.”
Various organisations and Dalit movements have planned a statewide agitation on March 16, to press their demand for a special legislation to protect inter-caste couples.
