TN police forms special anti-honour killing cells

After denying incidents of honour killings for years, Tamil Nadu police have formed first-of-its-kind special cells in Madurai and Salem districts to protect inter-caste marriage couples in line with an order of the Madras High Court.

The special cell headed by Inspector from Serious Crime Squad will come under the supervision of the DCP (Law and Order), District Social Welfare Officer, and District Adi Dravidar (Dalit) Welfare and will receive complaints from inter-caste couples facing harassment and threats of honour killing.

The cell was set up on the orders of the Madras HC in April 2016. The Court, while passing a judgement over a case of honour killing filed in 2014 of Vimala Devi, a caste Hindu, of Usilampatti in Madurai, issued a nine-point directive to the state government including the formation of special cells in every district.

Tamil Nadu, of late, has been witnessing a spate of honour killing incidents. Though the official record of the state police shows only two incidents from 2014 to 2016, the data maintained by several groups and political parties fighting against such heinous crimes show that 85 honour killing incidents in the last four years.

The special cells were formed in the wake of the contempt of the court petition filed by us against the state government coming up for hearing on August 10, said Tamil Nadu Untouchability Eradication Front general secretary Samuel Raaj. "We welcome the setting up of the cell," he said, pointing out the 400-km padayatra taken out by his organization seeking a special law to curb the honour killings and implement the court directive.

Kousalya, a victim of honour killing, said that many a time the police would side with the couple's parents after taking money. Kousalya's dalit husband Sankar was brutally murdered in broad day light in April last year by her parents as she married him against their wish. "I have seen in my case how a police inspector offered to chase away Sankar if he was paid money," she recalled.

A Kathir, executive director of Evidence, an NGO raised doubts about the efficacy of the special cell. "the problems faced by the inter caste couples will be resolved only if a stringent special act is passed. The special cell passed by the court directive will not be much effective," he said, noting that Tamil Nadu is one among the eight states in the country that had not responded to the 242nd report of the Law Commission of India, submitted in August 2012, on a legal framework to prevent incidents like honour killing.

INCONSISTENCY

• Tamil Nadu government data records two honour killing cases in 2 years.
   
• Data from rights groups and parties show 85 such incidents in 4 years.