TN Dalit techie murder: Inspector threatened Kavin to end relationship, alleges father
According to a Maalaimalar report, the deceased's father said Palayamkottai inspector Kasi Pandian had tipped off the accused Surjith about Kavin’s travel plans;
Inspector Kasi Pandian threatened Kavin to end relationship, alleges victim’s father
CHENNAI: The father of Kavin Selvaganesh, a 27-year-old Dalit software engineer who was brutally hacked to death in Tirunelveli, has alleged that Palayamkottai inspector Kasi Pandian played a direct role in his son’s murder, including tipping off the accused, Surjith, about Kavin’s travel plans and threatening Kavin to end his relationship with Surjith’s sister.
According to a Maalaimalar report, Kavin’s father said Kasi Pandian convened a caste-based panchayat to pressurise his son to break up and even issued death threats over the phone. “He is not a police officer, he is a gang leader,” he alleged, demanding the inspector’s immediate suspension.
He further claimed that the inspector had close links with the accused, including belonging to the same dominant caste, and that he forced Surjith to surrender after the murder. There are also allegations that Kasi Pandian and Surjith’s parents, both police sub-inspectors, worked in the same department.
Similar accusations were made against the same inspector in a 2023 murder case involving BJP functionary Jagan, where he was allegedly involved in another caste panchayat, the Maalaimalar report added.
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Surjith, who has been remanded in judicial custody for 14 days, is accused of luring Kavin to his home under the pretext of a discussion on July 27. Trusting him, Kavin accompanied Surjith on a two-wheeler, but midway, Surjith allegedly pulled out a sickle and attacked him. Despite trying to escape, Kavin was overpowered and hacked to death.
Kavin’s family has refused to accept his body from Tirunelveli Medical College Hospital, demanding the arrest of Surjith’s mother, Krishnakumari, who remains absconding. Surjith’s father, also named in the FIR, has been arrested.
Meanwhile, the state police on Wednesday (July 30) transferred the probe into the suspected honour killing case to the CB-CID and also invoked the Goondas Act against Surjith.
(with inputs from Bureau)