The daughter of a Tamil Nadu minister on Monday, 7 March, approached the Bengaluru police seeking protection from her father. Jayakalyani has sought protection from her father and Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Minister PK Sekar Babu.
According to Jayakalyani, both she and her husband, Satish Kumar, have been receiving death threats after they got married on Monday. "I suspect the role of my father behind this. I am an adult. We both love each other and have got married. We were given death threats, therefore we have approached the Bengaluru police commissioner seeking protection," she said in a public statement.
She submitted a memorandum to the Bengaluru Police Commissioner Kamal Pant on Monday.
Kumar’s Family Allegedly Intimidated By TN Minister
Jayakalyani said that she and Satish Kumar, a DMK member, were in a relationship for six years. Jayakalyani's family got to know about the relationship in January 2021.
The couple tried to elope and get married in September 2021. While they were on their way to Mumbai, on the minister's alleged insistence some Tamil Nadu police officers took them back to Chennai. On their return, Satish Kumar was arrested on trumped up charges, Jayakalyani alleged. The couple were then forced to stay apart.
After the couple reconciled, Satish Kumar released a video in which he accused the minister of allegedly intimidating his family. He alleged that he and his relatives, including women, were beaten up for four days at a Tamil Nadu police station.
“I’m scared. There are threats to my family from Sekar Babu,” he said in the video released in 2021. In the video, Kumar also requested TN Chief Minister MK Stalin to ensure justice.
“The two of us are in love with each other...We have seen Stalin sir help out so many people in trouble. I request him to take action and help us out.”Satish Kumar
Fearing Police, Couple Tie the Knot in Bengaluru
Jayakalyani moved to Bengaluru and sought help from the Karnataka Police because she feared Kumar could get arrested again, she claimed.
Jayakalyani said, "My parents have objected to my love for Satish Kumar. When I attempted to get married to him a couple of months ago, the police arrested him and took him into custody for two months," she said.
Hindu activist Bharath Shetty said the couple approached him on social media seeking help to get married.
"We organised a marriage ceremony as per Hindu tradition. The girl's family threatened the couple's lives and hence they requested for security from the Bengaluru police," he told IANS.
As Sekar Babu is a Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) leader, Jayakalyani seeking help from Karnataka, a BJP-ruled state, can affect the minister's political prospects in the state. The DMK has been opposing the BJP in Tamil Nadu.
Babu has been at the receiving end of Tamil Nadu BJP's political campaigns after he issued an order in 2021, allowing non-Brahmin priests to manage temples in the state.
The Quint tried reaching him but did not get a response.
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)