Gokulraj, an engineer, was found dead on railway tracks in Tamil Nadu
A young engineer in Tamil Nadu, who was found dead on railway tracks on Wednesday afternoon, was killed for speaking to an upper caste girl, his family alleges.
Hours before his body was found, 21-year-old Gokulraj, who belongs to a Dalit family, was seen talking to a girl in their village in Namakkal district. His family alleges that he was kidnapped by Yuvaraj, a local leader, and killed.
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 has been registered after the police found a note from the engineer's pocket, which indicated a failed affair. They are investigating the authenticity of the note and waiting for the report of the post-mortem, which will be conducted today.
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.