A 19-year-old Dalit Hindu boy and his 18-year-old Muslim girlfriend are alleged to have been murdered by the girl’s family in what appears to be a case of honor killing. The boy identified as Basavaraj Madivalapaa Badiger belongs to Saladahalli while the girl Davalbi Bandagisab Tambad is a resident of the neighboring Khanapur.
The boy is an autorickshaw driver. Vijayapura Superintendent of police Anupam Agarwal said that available information suggested that the couple were in a relationship. He further added “We are investigating the allegation that the family was not in favor of the relationship and when they found them in a field, they killed them using a stone. We will get further information on the case once we secure the suspects. Prima facie, it looks like a case of honor killing.”
As per reports, they were in a relationship for the past six months. Police also discovered that there have been instances earlier when the girl’s family had opposed her meeting Basavaraj who belongs to the Madar community. However, the family members were angered when they got to know that the two continued to meet.
On Tuesday, when the couple was meeting, as usual, one of the girl’s relatives spotted them together and informed the girl’s father. An irked father and other members of her family rushed to the spot and tied them to a tree before stabbing them to death. As per Asianet Suvarna News, the couple was killed in front of the boy’s mother’s eyes.
Basavaraj’s mother Mallavva told the channel that the couple was first trashed heavily and murdered with a sharp object and stone. The channel quotes Mallavva as saying “I begged them to let the couple go, however, they kept on thrashing the couple’.
It has also come to light that the United Dalit Forum of Sindagi Taluk submitted a memorandum to Karnataka Home Minister, Basavaraj Bommai, on Wednesday evening, alleging that this was a case of honor killing. Forum’s member Nandakumar Bambekar, president of Karnataka Madiga Youth Brigade as well, said in his media statement that the incident has shocked Dalits living in Saladahalli village. He has also alleged that the police are trying to protect the accused.
Meanwhile, the girl’s father, brothers, and two other relatives are on the run and the police have formed teams to look out for them. So far no arrests have been made in the case as per the statement given by the police.
(Featured Image Source: OpIndia)
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