Tamil Nadu

Dalit man’s limb allegedly chopped off over love-affair with caste-Hindu girl

Written by : TNM

 Yet another case of alleged caste-violence has emerged from Tamil Nadu. The New Indian Express reports that the limbs of a Dalit man, 28-year old Senthil, was allegedly chopped off  by members of the Vanniyar caste for daring to fall in love with a girl from their community.The incident is reported to have happened four months ago in Villupuram district, but the complaint has been filed only now. The TNIE reporter seems to have played a role in supporting the family of the Dalit man to file a police complaint.In what seems to have been going on for nearly three years, media reports suggest that Senthil, who was a bus-driver in 2013, fell in love with a caste-Hindu girl who was then in grade 10. The affair to seems to have begun consensually, but in due course and under family pressure, they ‘broke-up’. Cases were also filed against Senthil for eve-teasing, for which he cooled his heels in jail for 11 days. Under the impression that he continued to stalk her even after his jail-time, the family is alleged to have assaulted him physically and chopped off his right-leg.Speaking to The News Minute, the SP of Villupuram KS Narenthiran Nayar said, “We have formed a special team to investigate the case. We are in the preliminary investigation stage so I cannot confirm any facts. We have received the complaint only on July 3 and we are investigation now.”Just last month, another Dalit boy was allegedly kidnapped and murdered for being spotted with a girl college-mate at a temple. Read a detailed TNM report here.The Villupuram incident however is a stark remainder of the caste violence between Vanniyars and Dalits which had engulfed Dharmapuri district in 2013 after a Dalit man Ilavarasan’s body was found by the railway tracks. He had eloped with a girl from the Vanniyar caste earlier and married her. Following a promise of a proper marriage ceremony, his wife was taken away by the family to her home. A day before his death, his wife refused to return to him stating continuing clashes between both communities and memories of her father, who had committed suicide due to their marriage. This had triggered riots against Dalits in Dharmapuri in which around 250 Dalit homes were set on fire. 

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