The recent chilling murder in broad daylight of an intercaste couple — S. Saranya, 27, belonging to the Scheduled Caste and V. Mohan, 31, a Senguntha Mudaliar (a backward class) — at Thulukkaveli in Cholapuram near Kumbakonam shook Tamil Nadu. It also raised complicated questions about murders of inter-caste couples and could have political ramifications for Dalit movements fighting against caste killings in a State that has seen several high-profile cases of killing of inter-caste couples over many decades.
On June 13, the newly wed Saranya and Mohan, who hailed from Ponnur village in Tiruvannamalai district, were convinced by her eldest brother Sakthivel, 32, to visit her parents’ house at Cholapuram and reclaim the gold mortgaged in her name from the bank. Saranya’s parents were for the first time meeting Mohan, who she had married a few days ago, without the knowledge of her family.
Saranya, who had completed her diploma in nursing and was working as a nurse in Chennai, had met Mohan at Kilpauk Medical College while the two of them were looking after their mothers undergoing treatment.
