Gokulraj, an engineer, was found dead on railway tracks in Tamil Nadu last week
A young engineer in Tamil Nadu, who was found dead on railway tracks last Wednesday, is seen being dragged away by a group of men in CCTV footage retrieved by the police.
The gang is seen taking away 21-year-old Gokulraj while he was speaking to a girl in their town in Namakkal district. His family alleges that he was kidnapped by a local leader, Yuvaraj, and killed over his relationship with the girl, who belongs to an upper caste family.
Gokulraj's family has refused to accept his body unless the police change the case of suicide they had filed last week to murder.
The police are looking for Yuvaraj, who heads the Dheeran Chinnamalai Peravai - a fringe outfit that champions the cause of the Kongu Vellalar, a backward caste community.
A case of kidnapping and suspicious death was registered last week after the police found a note from the engineer's pocket, which indicated a failed affair.
In 2013, a Dalit man, Ilavarasan, was found dead on the railway tracks in Dharmapuri district in the state a day after his wife refused to return to him citing continuing clashes between both communities and memories of her father. Ilavarasan had married a woman from the higher Vanniyar community which led to her father committing suicide. This had triggered riots against Dalits - around 250 Dalit homes were set on fire. The police said Ilavarasan's death was a case of suicide and not murder.
Recently, the Kongu Vellalar community in the same Namakkal district hounded Tamil writer Perumal Murugan claiming his book "Madhorubagan" defamed their women and temple festival. Under tremendous pressure and coercion, the writer ultimately withdrew all his books and writings and shifted base to Chennai.