Honor killing - Equally deadly to the couple's friends || True story

Today after the high court judgment in Udumalaipet Shankar - Kausalya case, Honor killing is the talk of the town. Media is summarizing similar cases and people are so frustrated about caste fanaticism and the young couple who were murdered in the name of honor killing. I would like to place a point that even the friends who support or help these couples also get affected at times which also should be brought under the limelight. Here I am sharing a true story of a double murder case solved by my father based on my point.

Around twenty years back, my father was serving as Inspector of Police. One morning when he was busy with the case files in the police station, a shepherd boy came running to the station. When enquired he said that he saw human bones in the hilly area where he took his herd for grazing. Immediately my father and his crew reached the spot and found a human skeleton with a few left out flesh meaning the body has been disposed of here a few days back. When the crew intensified the search they were shocked to discover one more skeleton a few yards away.

The finding of two human skeletons convinced my father that it must be definitely a planned murder. When he thoroughly checked the area he found few things which left him puzzled. He found the leaves of the Chiku tree while there was no Chiku tree in and around that area. Also, he collected a single slipper of a small boy, a shirt of a small boy, and few bundles of thread that are no way connected to that area. So collecting all evidence, now it was time to find out the persons who were murdered. He checked the missing list but no such cases were filed. When he analyzed the shirts of the dead persons, he got a clue of tailor mark along with the name of the village, which is far away from his place.

Keeping this clue, he and a crew set out to the concerned village and informed the renowned person who is like the village head about the case. The village head’s son and the local police supported my father in enquiring. After the inquiry, my father came to know that two youngsters in the village are missing. With the shirts and pants, it was confirmed that the murdered persons were these boys and both were close friends. Since it is usual for the boys to go on tour for days together without informing the family, their parents did not realize that they were missing. My father and the team indulged in thorough checking of the village to collect more clue and the village head’s son was so helpful in approaching the people and collecting the details.

One day my father while doing rounds found a farm with a spinning mill. Out of suspicion when he checked the farm, to his shock he found the Chiku trees were planted there. Also, he got another slipper of the pair, the trouser matching the shirt and the thread bundles from the spinning mill. Instantly it was realized that the murder has been executed on the farm and the dead bodies are transported to the faraway place for disposal. The owner of the farm was missing and after severe inquiry, his hideout was traced and the person was caught. On investigation, he confessed the crime, and when he revealed about his partner my father was awestruck because it was none other than the village head’s son.

Both were taken into custody and during the investigation, they revealed that these boys helped in the elopement of a young couple and performed their intercaste marriage. The farm owner is the uncle of the bride and when they tried to find out the couple, these boys hid them and were not ready to reveal their residence. So out of anger, the uncle conspired with the village head’s son who is also of the same caste. The village head’s son cunningly invited the boys to the farm for a drink saying that no one is there on the farm. When the boys arrived, he sent one of the boys to buy sidedish and before his return murdered the other guy. When the boy returned and enquired about his friend he said that he has sent him to buy a soda with cooling and involved him in a conversation. Meanwhile, the uncle came out from the backside and murdered the other guy too.

Both the accused took the dead bodies along with the waste materials scattered over there in a tractor and shifted the bodies to the hilly area and disposed of. The tractor number was crosschecked with the petrol bunk on the way where they filled up the tank and confirmed the crime. This was one remarkable case in the history of my father’s uniform service. He received a lot of appreciation for this and he was invited to the police academy to take a class on this. Even after his retirement, many junior officers have visited our home to take notes on it. But my father always remembers how the village head’s son was assisting him in the investigation without any guilt or fear. 

When I saw the movie Nadodigal I remembered this case because all the time we talk about the eloped couples and their murders but we never focus on the sufferings undergone by the friends of relatives for helping the couple. It is rightly said that Caste is the bedrock of our culture unfortunately and the intercaste marriages alone cannot wipe it off. The need of the hour is the change in the mindset of the people.


Disclaimer: The pictures are used only for reference. I do not own the copyrights.