Latest news with #ScheduledCastesandScheduledTribes
NDTV
a day ago
- NDTV
"Leave My Parents Alone...": Appeal Of Murdered Dalit Techie's Girlfriend
Chennai: Caught in a maelstrom of emotions - her father and brother have been arrested for the murder of her Dalit partner, Kavin Selvaganesh - the young woman from a so-called upper caste community in Tamil Nadu's Tirunelveli appears on the edge of breaking down in video statements released Thursday. In the first video she appeals for her parents to be left alone. "Nobody knows the truth of the relationship I had with Kavin... and nobody needs to comment on it or us. The truth is known only to Kavin and me. Our parents were not involved. Don't punish them... leave them alone." On the verge of crying, she continues, "Everyone has rushed to tell me, to tell us, what they think and feel. But no one has asked about me or my feelings... except for one girl in the newspaper." The young woman then thanks her lone, faceless supporter. In the second she explains that Kavin and she "loved each other, truly" but, like all couples, needed time to find their feet. She then recounts the tragic events leading up to Kavin's murder. NDTV cannot independently verify either video. "On May 30 Surjith (her brother) and Kavin spoke to each other. At that time Surjith told my father (Saravanan, a police sub-inspector) about Kavin. My father then asked me if I was in love with him... I told him 'no'. But I only said that because Kavin asked me for some time..." she said in the video. "He asked me for six months to think about our relationship." "I don't know what happened between them (Surjith and Kavin) over the next month, but Surjith later called Kavin and told him to come and ask (the father, Saravanan) for my hand in marriage." The young woman said she told Kavin to visit her family on July 28. But a day earlier his grandfather had a head injury and was admitted to the alternative medicine centre where she worked. "... I had to admit him and then Kavin came inside (the patient's room) and then left again. I was talking to his mother and uncle and, as they were leaving, we wondered where Kavin had gone. His mother called him (on his phone) but he didn't pick up." READ | Cop Father Of Man Who Allegedly Killed Tamil Dalit Techie Arrested Kavin's mother then told the young woman she was hungry. "I told her, 'you go eat and I will tell Kavin to call you'... but then this (her partner's death) happened." Visibly tired and distressed, the young woman concludes, "Don't go around speaking about what you don't know... my parents had nothing to do with this. Leave this alone. Leave it alone." The Murder of Kavin Kavin Selvaganesh, 23, was a software professional. He was found dead outside the same medical facility treating his grandfather and where his girlfriend worked. CCTV footage from outside the facility showed Surjith and Kavin; the latter was being driven away on the former's motorcycle. That was moments before he was killed. Surjith has surrendered to the police. He faces murder charges and the cops have filed cases under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, and have also filed cases against the parents. READ | Tamil Dalit Techie Murder: Case Sent To Crime Branch Amid Outrage A police officer told NDTV, "Surjith says he didn't approve the relationship and, despite his warning, Kavin was in touch with her. Further investigation is underway". The young woman's father has been arrested too. The mother is also a serving police personnel and has been suspended. The Caste Angle The caste angle means the crime has stirred up a debate on honour killings in Tamil Nadu, a state that, for all its other accomplishments, remains troublingly mired in the caste system. Kavin's parents have refused to accept his body. They have demanded the young woman's parents and brother be arrested for what they say is a "clear case of honour killing". They have also accused the police of bias given Surjith's family connections. Actor-politician Kamal Haasan condemned the killing, calling for stringent punishment for the accused and a united political front to fight casteism. All of this comes as Tamil Nadu preps for an Assembly election next year, with the opposition AIADMK and BJP having already attacked the ruling DMK for a breakdown in law and order.
The Hindu
2 days ago
- Politics
- The Hindu
Pa. Ranjith seeks separate law to prevent caste-based crimes
Filmmaker Pa. Ranjith on Wednesday criticised the DMK and its allies for what he called 'ignoring the need for a separate law' to deal with caste-based crimes in the State after the brutal murder of Scheduled Caste youth Kavin Selvaganesh, a software engineer and son of school teacher on July 27. He urged the State Government to constitute a special committee comprising of SC activists, retired judge and intellectuals, akin to Retired Justice K. Chandru's committee that studied caste discrimination in schools, be to study and prevent honour killings. In statement, he pointed out that the District Collector has not visited the family of the victim despite being required to do so as per the provisions of the Prevention of Atrocity Act (Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes), and rued that the scheduled castes are having to fight for minimum form of justice even at times when media spotlights such atrocities. 'The current DMK government is displaying the same kind of apathy just as the previous government when it comes to handling Dalit-related cases. The law-and-order situation in the State has deteriorated on multiple fronts and the fact that the parents of the accused are police personnel raises serious concerns about how this case will be handled. The Tamil Nadu government must ensure a completely transparent investigation and arrest Surjith's parents without delay,' said Mr. Ranjith. Mr. Ranjith said the State government shouldn't just stop with providing government job to the victims' family but pay special focus to monitor districts where caste-crimes are high. 'Districts like Tirunelveli, Sivagangai, Pudukkottai, and Thoothukudi must be declared as 'atrocity-prone areas' under the provisions of the SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act and establish special police stations,' he said.
News18
7 days ago
- News18
Two held for beating 3 Dalit youths in UP village
Agency: PTI Aligarh (UP), Jul 25 (PTI) Two people were arrested for allegedly beating three Dalit youths in a village here, police said on Friday. According to police, the incident occurred on Tuesday evening in Musepur Jalal village during a house-warming celebration in one of the victims' houses. An argument broke out between the accused and the victims, which soon turned violent. The accused, identified as Ravi Kumar and Govind, thrashed the Dalit youths, police said. Following the incident, some local leaders staged a protest against the violence at the police station and blocked traffic on the Aligarh-Agra Highway on Thursday. They demanded justice and the arrest of the accused. Circle Officer (Iglas) Mahesh Kumar said that the situation was soon brought under control in the area. A case was registered under sections 191(2) (rioting), 115 (2) (voluntarily causing hurt ), 352 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace) and 351 (criminal intimidation) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and sections of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. The accused were arrested on Friday. Further investigation is underway, he added. PTI COR NAV HIG Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
New Indian Express
25-07-2025
- Politics
- New Indian Express
Telangana government to implement focused schemes for underprivileged communities after caste survey
Notably, the Telangana government passed two legislations — the Telangana Backward Classes, Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Reservation of Seats in Educational Institutions and of Appointments or Posts in Services under the State) Bill, 2025 and the Telangana Backward Classes (Reservation of Seats in Rural and Urban Local Bodies) Bill, 2025 — in the Assembly on March 17, 2025. As these two Bills remain under scrutiny by the Union Home Ministry, the Telangana government has sent the Telangana Panchayat Raj (Amendment) Ordinance to Governor Jishnu Dev Varma. This ordinance aims to facilitate the enhancement of 42% reservations for BCs in local body elections. It is learnt that the Governor has sought the opinion of the Attorney General of India on the proposed bill. On July 25, the Cabinet council meeting was postponed as the Governor is yet to give his decision on the Telangana Panchayat Raj (Amendment) Ordinance. It appears that the government is firm on issuing 42% reservations to BCs in the local body elections, based on the caste survey data.
Hans India
22-07-2025
- Politics
- Hans India
Revanth for Delhi today to garner MPs' support for 42% BC quota
Hyderabad: Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy will be giving a powerpoint presentation to all the Congress MPs in Delhi on caste census and BC reservations on July 24. During his 3-day visit likely to begin from Tuesday, he will be requesting the Prime Minister Narendra Modi for a discussion in Parliament on 42% reservation for BCs. As part of bolstering the support for the BC reservation in view of 'Chalo Delhi' on July 25, he will be meeting party seniors and MPs from INDI bloc. Along with the CM, Deputy CM Mallu Bhatti Vikarmarka will also be visiting the national capital. Both will be meeting Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi and AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge to brief them about the report on caste census of the State, which was submitted by the expert committee recently. Telangana Congress MPs Convener Mallu Ravi informed the media on Monday in Delhi that CM and Deputy CM will meet Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge in Delhi and will explain to them the caste census and 42% reservation for BCs undertaken in the state and will accept their suggestions and recommendations. During evening hours CM Revanth will give a powerpoint presentation to all Congress MPs in the country at Indira Bhavan on caste census and BC reservations. He said that he will request a discussion in Parliament on 42% reservation for BCs. It may be mentioned here that in March 2025, the Telangana Assembly passed two bills, the Telangana Backward Classes, Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (reservation of seats in educational institutions and of appointments or posts in services under the State) Bill 2025 and The Telangana Backward Classes (Reservation of seats in Rural and Urban Local Bodies) Bill 2025, in the Assembly. These bills were then sent to the Centre for constitutional amendments. The Governor, Jishnu Dev Varma, forwarded the bills to President Droupadi Murmu for consideration. Recently, the Telangana cabinet decided to proceed with an ordinance to implement the 42% reservation for the upcoming local body elections. The state government justified this increase by citing the results of a recent caste census, which indicated that BCs constitute 56% of Telangana's population. The ordinance intends to amend the Telangana Panchayat Raj Act, 2018, which currently caps reservations at 50%.
