In yet another case of suspected caste-killing in Tamil Nadu, a 24-year-old man was hacked to death by his father-in-law in Dindigul district on Sunday, October 12.
The victim, Ramachandran, a milkman from Ramanayakampatti village near Dindigul, belonged to the Naickar community, a grouping of Backward and Most Backward Class communities in Tamil Nadu. He had married 21-year-old Aarathi, a college student from the Kallar community — classified as a dominant Backward Class in the state — after a three-year relationship. The couple’s inter-caste marriage had been opposed by Aarathi’s family, and they reportedly eloped amid threats from her relatives.
On Sunday morning, while Ramachandran was riding his two-wheeler to collect milk, he was reportedly intercepted near Ganapathipatti village by Aarathi’s father, 49-year-old Chandran. Following an argument, Chandran allegedly attacked Ramachandran with a sickle, killing him on the spot.
The Nilakottai police have arrested Chandran, and Ramachandran’s body has been sent to the Dindigul Government Medical College Hospital for autopsy. Relatives of the victim staged protests demanding that all individuals involved in the attack be brought to justice.
Ramachandran’s death is the third reported case in Tamil Nadu in recent months where inter-caste marriages appear to have been linked to fatal violence. In July, IT employee Kavin Selvaganesh was hacked to death in Tirunelveli, and in September, 28-year-old Vairamuthu was killed in Mayiladuthurai, both allegedly over marriages outside their caste.
Following the killing of Kavin, left-wing parties and the Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) had submitted a joint letter to Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin in August, calling for a special law to address caste-based ‘honour’ killings. The letter argued that existing laws were inadequate to tackle the deep-rooted social pressures and discrimination behind such crimes, urging that these murders be explicitly recognised in official records to improve data collection, raise public awareness, and strengthen preventive measures.