india

Updated: Jun 26, 2019 07:45 IST

Hours after he married an 18-year-old Dalit woman, a 22-year-old man was murdered allegedly by a gang led by his brother in Mettupalayam taluk of Coimbatore district in Tamil Nadu on Tuesday.

Police have identified the deceased as Kanakan, alias S Kanagaraj, who was a native of Rangapattinam Odai in Mettupalayam. According a police official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, the deceased and his wife had met while studying in a college in Coimbatore.

“Kanakan and Dharshani Priya were in a relationship for more than a year. When Kanakan who belongs to Goundar caste sought his parent’s permission to marry Priya, they did not agree as she was a Dalit. So, they eloped and solemnised their marriage at a local temple in Mettupalayam on Tuesday. Hours after the marriage, a gang attacked the couple with sickles,” said the official. Gounder is an intermediate caste that is dominant in western Tamil Nadu. Kanakan’s body has been shifted to Coimbatore government hospital for autopsy.

Police suspect Kanakan’s brother, K Vinodh, played a key role in the murder.A probe has been launched into this matter, said an official. Based on the complaint filed by the woman’s relatives against Vinodh and his friends, the police have taken Vinodh in custody.