13 booked for ‘fining’ couple over intercaste marriage

According to police officials, the community leaders imposed a fine of ₹6 lakhs on Venka Shetty and Sangamma after their son married a Dalit girl in the village. Govinda Raju married Shwetha, a native of Hoovina Koppalu village in Malavalli taluk of Mandya district, on September 18, 2018. The couple has two children and is living in Malavalli, police said.

Chamarajanagara Police registered a case against 13 leaders of the Uppara Shetty community of Kunagalli village in Kollegala taluk in Chamarajanagara district on Sunday after a couple was fined and faced a boycott for their inter caste marriage, officials said.

Chamarajanagara Police registered a case against 13 leaders of the Uppara Shetty community of Kunagalli village in Kollegala (Agencies/Representative use)

According to police officials, the community leaders imposed a fine of ₹6 lakhs on Venka Shetty and Sangamma after their son married a Dalit girl in the village. Govinda Raju married Shwetha, a native of Hoovina Koppalu village in Malavalli taluk of Mandya district, on September 18, 2018. The couple has two children and is living in Malavalli, police said.

Police said in January, the couple had come to their native Kunagalli in Kollegala. The neighbours came to know that Shwetha belonged to the Dalit community and complained to the community leaders, they added.

The community elders called a meeting (panchayat) on February 23, and imposed a fine of ₹3 lakhs on Venkata Shetty and his wife, saying they desecrated the honour of the community by marrying a girl of lower caste, police said.

The panchayat also instructed the other community members to sever all relationships with the family till they give a fine of ₹3 lakhs. They also instructed village traders not to sell anything to the family, not to speak with them and ordered them to pay the fine before March 1.

Unable to pay the fine, the family approached Kollegala deputy SP office and filed a complaint. Later, the panchayat imposed an additional fine of ₹3 lakhs on the family for approaching the police.

‘’We come from a poor family and are daily wage workers. How we can pay a fine of ₹6 lakhs? The police should provide us justice,” Govinda Raju said.

“I am staying in Malavalli, which is 45 kilometres away, after the marriage, afraid of facing a social boycott by the community. I came home in January, and the neighbours complained to community elders. We are daily wager workers and can’t afford to pay even ₹10,000,” Devaraju added.

“Soon after receiving the complaint, I instructed the Yelandur circle inspector to probe the incident. I instructed village leaders to appear for a meeting in the office on March 5, but no one turned up,” Kollegala deputy SP Some Gowda said.

“During the investigation, the officers found that the complainants were facing a social boycott. We have registered a case against 13 persons named in the complaint,” Chamarajanagara SP Padmini Sahoo said.

A case has been registered under the prevention of SC/ST Atrocity Act against community leaders Venkatashetty, Mahadeva, Monda Shetty Kannappa, Nanjashetty, Mahadeva Shetty, Siddesh and six others. “The Constitution has given the right to equality to all the citizens. No one has the right to snatch it. Such things will be dealt with strictly to ensure justice to the aggrieved,” she added.

After the complaint, all the village leaders are absconding, and the Mamballi police are further investigating the case, officials said.