(Trigger warning: Mentions of casteist violence. Reader discretion is advised)
"They brutally murdered my husband. Why? Because he belonged to a lower caste, and they didn't accept our marriage. Who are they to decide who I can marry and who I can't?" asked an inconsolable D Sharmila, aged 21.
"Is caste all that matters? Should we look at someone's caste before falling in love with them?"D Sharmila
Three days ago, on 24 February, Sharmila's husband G Praveen, a 22-year-old Dalit man, was allegedly hacked to death by a five-member gang, including Sharmila's brother, near a bar in Tamil Nadu capital Chennai's Pallikaranai locality, in a suspected case of caste killing.
On 25 February, the Chennai Police arrested five persons – Sharmila's elder brother Dinesh (23), Sriram (18), Stefen Kumar (24), Jothi Linga (25), and Vishnu Raj (25) – in connection with the incident.
Police officials told The Quint that the preliminary probe revealed that Praveen, a car mechanic, and Sharmila, a fourth-year college student, had eloped and got married in October 2023, as the latter's family disapproved of their inter-caste marriage. The officials also said there was a revenge angle to the crime, as Praveen was allegedly involved in the murder of a ganja peddler in 2022.
While Praveen belonged to the Adi Dravidar community, which comes under the Scheduled Caste (SC) category, Sharmila belonged to the Yadhava caste, which comes under Other Backward Class (OBC).
'We Were in Love Since Class 10, Parents Wanted Me to Break Off Our Relationship'
A resident of Chennai's Jalladianpet locality, Sharmila is the youngest of three siblings; she has two older brothers, including Dinesh, one of the accused in the case.
Meanwhile, Praveen, a class 10 dropout, was the youngest son of Gopi, a car mechanic in Pallikaranai, and Chitra, a homemaker.
In a telephonic conversation with The Quint on 26 February, Sharmila said that she and Praveen had been in a relationship for the last seven years, since their school days.
"We studied in the same school in Chennai and were in a relationship since 2016. My parents knew about it since then but were against it because he belonged to a lower caste. They told me to break it off multiple times, but I did not... In 2023, my parents began to find alliances for me. But I was sure that I wanted to marry Praveen. I thought they would agree to it over time. Despite trying to convince them, they refused to agree. It was a very hard period, and I couldn't manage living at home..."D Sharmila to The Quint
On 19 October 2023, the duo registered their marriage despite opposition from Sharmila's family, and the latter moved into Praveen's home.
After their wedding, Sharmila's parents allegedly threatened the couple and filed a police complaint against Praveen, she claimed.
Sharmila told The Quint that in October 2023, her parents had filed a case against Praveen, alleging that he abducted her. When the couple had gone to the police station to clarify she had consented to the marriage, her brother Dinesh threatened to kill them.
"My parents and brother (Dinesh) had gone to the police station and filed a complaint. Dinesh had threatened to kill both me and Praveen. He had said, 'For me, my caste is more important than my sister. I will kill you both.' My parents disowned me and said I was not their daughter," an anguished Sharmila said.
Speaking to The Quint, Chitra, Praveen's mother, alleged that Dinesh threatened to "ruin" the entire family. "He told us that he will make our life hell..." she said.
What Happened on 24 February?
A senior police official, on the condition of anonymity, told The Quint that the incident took place at around 9 pm on Saturday, 24 February, when Praveen had stepped out to buy dinner for his family.
"When he was on the way, he received a call from Sriram, a friend of his, who asked Praveen to meet him at a particular location. As soon as he reached, he saw that he was surrounded by a gang of five people, including the victim's brother-in-law, who allegedly hacked him. He had several cut marks on his face and body. When he collapsed, the gang escaped. We received a call at around 9:30 pm and our team rushed him to the Chromepet Government Hospital where he was declared dead."A senior police official told The Quint
Sharmila said that she found out about the incident after one of Praveen's friends "came home crying."
"I didn't understand what was happening, so I tried calling Praveen but I was not able to reach him. Then a police officer came home and took all of my details and asked me to come to the station. That's when I found out that he was murdered," she said.
According to the police, Dinesh had allegedly got in touch with Sriram on wanting to "hurt Praveen." However, caste hatred was not the only reason for the crime, officials said.
Police officials confirmed to The Quint that Praveen was named as an accused in a 2022 murder of a ganja peddler and that the other four accused (Sriram, Stefen, Jothi Linga, and Vishnu) allegedly wanted revenge for the same.
"It looks like Dinesh got in touch with Sriram to execute the murder. Sriram and four others wanted revenge for the previous murder, so they ganged up with Dinesh. However, in his latest statement, Dinesh claimed that he only wanted to hurt Praveen and not kill him. But he could be saying it to hide his crime. More will be clear post investigation," police officials said.
At this juncture, it is unclear how the four other accused were linked to the ganja peddler. The police said they are investigating the same.
The Quint had reached out to Sharmila over the revenge angle after speaking with the Chennai Police. The article will be updated when she responds.
The accused were booked under Sections 302 (Murder) and 149 (unlawful assembly) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and 3(2)(V) of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act). They were produced in court on Monday, 27 February, and were remanded to judicial custody.
'My Son's Face Was Disfigured... Is Caste Pride Worth Taking Someone's Life?'
Chitra told The Quint that with Praveen's death, the "life of the entire family has been shattered."
"I gave birth to a beautiful son. But when his body returned, his face was disfigured. They slit my son so badly. I couldn't bear to see his face," she said.
"We are all heartbroken and shattered. He was the light of our lives. More than us, this girl (Sharmila) is madly in love with him. She hasn't eaten in three days, has been crying all day. Her life is ruined at such a young age. How will we ever get over this? Is it a crime that we are lower caste people? Is caste pride worth taking someone's life? I can't explain to you in words what we are going through."Asked Chitra, Praveen's mother
Meanwhile, all Sharmila wants is justice for the murder of her husband.
"What happened to me and my family is torture. I don't want any other inter-caste couple to face this. We need justice for what has happened. I want my brother and the other accused to rot in jail. They should suffer every single day until their death, just like how my Praveen suffered in his last moments. Only if this happens, will it set an example for other people who want to engage in caste hatred and violence..." Sharmila told The Quint.
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