In a suspected case of ‘honour’ killing, a family allegedly murdered a 19-year-old woman, who had secretly married her Dalit friend recently, and set her on fire in the early hours of Sunday.

The police have identified the victim as Monica and said the incident occurred at Thimmana Hosuru in the district.

Preliminary investigations reveal that Monica was in love with a Dalit youth for the past few years. She recently left home to marry him. Following this, her family had filed a “missing complaint” with the Mandya Rural police station recently.

A senior police officer with the Mandya Rural police station said they suspect that Monica’s parents could have murdered her on Saturday nigh, after convincing her to return home. They suspect that the parents may have burnt her body at around 4 a.m. on Sunday.

“After receiving information about the incident from the villagers, we picked up some of her relatives for questioning. Further investigations are on,” T.J. Udesha, Deputy Superintendent of Police, Mandya subdivision, told The Hindu.