Politics of beheadings, caste consciousness in south TN

By Arun Lakshman

Chennai, Nov 14 (SocialNews.XYZ) The districts of Tirunelveli, Dindigul, and Madurai in south Tamil Nadu have been reeling under the politics of beheadings with four back-to-back macabre killings in a span of just 10 days. The gruesome incidents led to assessments that all was not well in these areas of the state and that they were revenge killings based on caste lines.

Recently, the Tirunelveli District Collector ordered that private buses should not play songs glorifying castes during the Thevar Jayanthi celebrated on October 30. Several complaints were lodged that in private buses plying in these areas of Tamil Nadu, songs were played that highlight the valour of castes including murders and beheadings committed in the past.

Velmurugan, a software professional at Chennai hailing from Tirunelveli while speaking to IANS said: "When we were in school in the early 90s, we were thrilled to listen to the songs that depict the valour of our castes and how our community elders had killed and done away with our 'enemies' from the lower castes, specifically Dalits.

"When we were about 13 or 14 years, we found these as major deeds. But when we grew up and moved to cities for professional education, we found how improper it was. I, for instance, have several close Dalit friends and we live like brothers but back home, the situation remains unchanged, and law enforcement agencies have to take a strong stand to prevent such issues."

After four back-to-back beheadings and hurling the severed heads at the memorial of the rivals, gave clear messages that all the killings were on revenge lines and both the Dalits and the Thevar community were involved in the fights.

In 1996 when there were similar killings, police took stringent action and launched a crackdown leading to several criminals being rounded up and their arms confiscated, bringing in relative peace in the districts of Tirunelveli, Dindigul, and Madurai.

However in some rural areas of Tamil Nadu, it is shocking that Dalits having separate tumblers and glasses for drinking tea and in some parts of the state, people from the Dalit community are not even allowed to walk through the streets used by 'Upper castes'.

Several Dalit people complain that it was the Other Backward Castes (OBC) that are mostly issuing 'fatwas' like untouchability, not allowing to sit in buses and not allowing to drink from same glasses or tumblers in tea shops as well as not allowing to use the same street or roads frequented by them.

Udayanathan, a Dalit activist at Tirunelveli told IANS: "In the remote areas of the district, our community members are not allowed to walk through some streets that are being used by some OBC communities.

"We as Dalit activists complain about the matter in police stations but on many occasions, police turn a blind eye to our genuine complaints. Such small and minor frictions lead to violence and at times killings. Once a killing happens, then the other side also develops revenge and revenge killings take place."

After the four back-to-back beheadings, state Director General of Police, C. Sylendrakumar called a high-level meeting of senior police officers from the ADGP level down to the Station House Officers (SHOs). The DGP, it is learned, told officers not to be subservient before any caste groups and not to shiver before a mob of caste leaders.

The police have also enforced crackdowns on shops and small industries that make knives, matchete, and other such objects. The police have informed the shopkeepers and other industries that make knives, matchets, axes, and other equipment to record the details of those who buy them. The police also directed the shopkeepers and industrialists to gather the telephone numbers of those who buy such things.

In many rural hamlets of Tamil Nadu, 'Dalit walls' are common with walls up to 9 to 10 feet being constructed to divide Scheduled Castes and Dalit colonies from the residents of the landlords- most of whom are drawn from the upper caste and OBC communities.

Uthapuram in Madurai district was infamous for its 12 feet high 'Dalit wall' which was 600 metres long. Clashes between the Upper castes and Dalits were normal in this area and in one such incident, a Dalit youth was shot dead by the police.

Another instance of hostility is the Upper castes not allowing Dalits to enter temples and in Tirunelveli, Theni, Madurai, Dindigul, and Ramanathapuram districts. Village temples were locked despite the Dalits receiving permission from courts to enter.

The recent Tamil movie 'Jai Bhim' directed by TJ Gnanavel has clearly depicted how the poor tribes are facing harassment at the hands of police at the instance of certain communities.

The movie showed how the police even after knowing fully well that the Irula tribe member, Rajakannu was innocent of a gold theft from the house of a rich Upper caste family was tortured, killed in police custody, and his body thrown off, while his friends were jailed.

However the first of the recent killings and beheadings that took place in Tamil Nadu, Dalits had also taken to arms and this is happening in the state now. Of the four killings, it was Sankara Subramanian, a farmhand belonging to the Thevar caste- an OBC group, who was killed allegedly by Dalits on September 13, and his decapitated head was thrown at the Gopalasamudram cremation ground. This was in retaliation to the murder of a Dalit man, Manthiram who was killed and his head severed in the same way.

Manthiram's son, Maharaja, and six others were arrested for the murder of Sankara Subramanian. In retaliation, a Dalit, Mariappan was killed and his head severed and placed at the spot where Sankara Subramanian was murdered. Mariappan was also accused of another killing a few years before.

On September 23 in Dindigul district, a Thevar woman, Nirmala Devi was killed and her head severed. She was the fifth accused in the murder of the Dalit leader Pasupathi Pandian a few years ago. And on the evening of September 23, motorbike-borne assailants killed and severed the head of Stephen Raj a Dalit, reportedly as a retaliation to the murder of Nirmala Devi.

Police are of the opinion that several Dalit communities have come up in life due to better education and job openings abroad, the rivalry within the mind is raging and many from both the Dalit and the Upper Castes are funding the violence that is happening.

The collection of money is mainly to fight cases in the courts of law and according to a senior police officer who was in charge of south Tamil Nadu earlier, a Thevar group had collected money to the tune of Rs 3 crore to fight the criminal case.

While speaking to IANS, M.K.Krishnan, a Social Scientist and former professor oat a leading University in the US, said: "Killings are reprisal killings are the extreme form of revenge that has been cultivated in the minds of these people at a young age. The social conditions including ostracism from tea shops, Dalit walls to separate people, no entry to temples, demarcation in schools, music depicting killers as heroes are all reasons behind developing revenge in the minds of people.

"At a young age, people develop hatred, and then revenge is cultivated leading to extreme forms of violence in killing and beheading. Education is the most important tool to eradicate this but so is awareness among the public that killings and counter killings are not the solution to such matters. Police and law enforcement agencies must never allow things to spiral to the level of killings and proper intelligence machinery will help defuse tensions.

"Glorifications must never be allowed to take place and organized gangs can never be allowed to be protectors of any caste or faith."

Source: IANS