Wife of Dalit man hacked to death in Tirupur gives witness statement to magistrate

Coimbatore: The witness statement of 19-year old Kausalya, whose Dalit husband was brutally hacked to death in full public view in a suspected honour killing recently, was on Monday recorded by a court in neighbouring Tirupur district. Kausalya, who survived the 13 March attack and is undergoing treatment for head injuries in a government hospital in Coimbatore, was taken to the court in an ambulance with tight security and produced before the Judicial Magistrate’s Court in Palladam. [caption id=“attachment_2673286” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Screenshot from YouTube video of the attack.[/caption] Appearing as a witness, Kausalya gave her statement under CrPC section 164 (recording of confessions and statements) about the incident before Magistrate G Krishnan. A three-member gang had attacked the couple near a bus stand in Udumalpet allegedly at the behest of the woman’s father, a caste Hindu who was opposed to their inter-caste marriage. While her 22-year old husband Shankar died, Kausalya, who sustained sickle injuries on her head and forehead, is recovering after treatment. After the nearly two-and-half-hour witness’ statement, Kausalya was taken back to the hospital in the evening, police said. Police have so far arrested five persons in connection with the murder which sparked an outrage after shocking visuals of the attack went viral. Kausalya’s father had surrendered before a court and denied any role in the attack. PTI