Koppal, 19 Feb

An attempted case of caste killing has been reported from Handral village in Koppal taluk. A man allegedly tried to murder his sister for marrying a man from another caste. Fortunately, the four-month pregnant woman escaped, police said.

Koppal DSP Dr. Ram L. Arasiddi told Salar News, "Uday Kumar and Meenakshi had a civil marriage one-and-a-half years ago. On Tuesday, they came from Bengaluru to his village, Handral, for the wedding of Meenakshi’s brother-in-law Venkatesh."

A mass wedding had been organised in Handral on Wednesday, and Venkatesh too was getting married.

At around 5pm on Wednesday, Meenakshi’s brother Manjunath attacked her with an axe.

“The woman was injured seriously on her head and shoulder. She was admitted to the Koppal District Hospital and is recovering. The accused has been arrested," said the DSP, Dr. Ram L. Arasiddi. The accused, Manjunath, 30, is a sheep herder.

Police said Meenakshi, 23, had fallen in love and had married an ST (Valmiki) man.

“After receiving information about the incident, we rushed to the spot and arrested Manjunath,” the DSP said.