Vizhuthugal, an NGO fighting for the rights of dalits, has notified the National Commission of Schedule Castes about two recent incidents where minor dalit girls were raped by caste Hindus. The first incident occured on May 2 in Udumalpet, Tirupur district and the second in Kannivadi, Dindigul district. The NGO asked the commission to ensure the state takes action against the guilty in both cases.
A 17-year-old dalit girl from Kallapalayam village near Sular, who was a second year diploma student in a polytechnic college in the city, was in love with Azhagupadmanaban, 22 from Kannivadi in Dindigul. He worked for a private firm in Sulur. He was a Chettiyar and promised to marry the minor soon. Trusting him, she left home discretely on May 2. Her parents approached the Sulur police to file a 'girl missing' complaint. Sub-inspector Sivakumar refused to receive the complaint.
"Azhagupadmanaban and his two friends raped and murdered the girl and dumped the body in a hilly area near Kannivadi in Dindigul. He returned to work on May 2 and later pretended to help the girl's parents search for her. On May 6, the girl''s body was found after which police picked him up for interrogation. Later, he was arrested," said M Thangavel, director of Vizhuthugal organisation.
Moorthy, one of his accomplices, surrendered before a court, while Jayapandi, the third culprit, is still absconding. "The police failed to register rape case against the trio. They told us that they are waiting for the post-mortem report," he said, calling for a CBI probe into the case.
On May 2 around 11.30pm, a 16-year-old dalit girl, who was waiting for her SSLC results, was raped by her neighbour in an abandoned building at Vilamarathupatti near Udumalpet. She had gone to attend a temple function in the village and was returning home on foot. M Mahendran, 34, a Gounder from the same village took her to an abandoned building with the help of his friend where he raped her.
"Dalit are oppressed by caste Hindus. They are unable to fight back. Many dalit girls are being raped but not all incidents come to light. It's time the government did something to protect the safety of dalit girls," said Thangavel.
A 17-year-old dalit girl from Kallapalayam village near Sular, who was a second year diploma student in a polytechnic college in the city, was in love with Azhagupadmanaban, 22 from Kannivadi in Dindigul. He worked for a private firm in Sulur. He was a Chettiyar and promised to marry the minor soon. Trusting him, she left home discretely on May 2. Her parents approached the Sulur police to file a 'girl missing' complaint. Sub-inspector Sivakumar refused to receive the complaint.
"Azhagupadmanaban and his two friends raped and murdered the girl and dumped the body in a hilly area near Kannivadi in Dindigul. He returned to work on May 2 and later pretended to help the girl's parents search for her. On May 6, the girl''s body was found after which police picked him up for interrogation. Later, he was arrested," said M Thangavel, director of Vizhuthugal organisation.
Moorthy, one of his accomplices, surrendered before a court, while Jayapandi, the third culprit, is still absconding. "The police failed to register rape case against the trio. They told us that they are waiting for the post-mortem report," he said, calling for a CBI probe into the case.
On May 2 around 11.30pm, a 16-year-old dalit girl, who was waiting for her SSLC results, was raped by her neighbour in an abandoned building at Vilamarathupatti near Udumalpet. She had gone to attend a temple function in the village and was returning home on foot. M Mahendran, 34, a Gounder from the same village took her to an abandoned building with the help of his friend where he raped her.
"Dalit are oppressed by caste Hindus. They are unable to fight back. Many dalit girls are being raped but not all incidents come to light. It's time the government did something to protect the safety of dalit girls," said Thangavel.