Tamil Nadu honour killing: Death sentence of woman victim’s brother commuted to life
A division bench of Justices P N Prakash and A A Nakkiran commuted the death sentence imposed on Marudhupandian, the brother of D Kannagi, the victim woman.
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The Madras High Court (File)The Madras High Court on Wednesday reduced the death sentence given by a lower court in Cuddalore in Tamil Nadu to the prime accused in the 2003 honour killing case, perhaps the first of its kind which rocked the state, to life imprisonment.
A division bench of Justices P N Prakash and A A Nakkiran commuted the death sentence imposed on Marudhupandian, the brother of D Kannagi, the victim woman. The court, however, confirmed the punishments of life term given to the other accused, including the woman’s father Duraisamy.
The bench was passing orders on a referred trial by the lower court seeking to confirm the punishment and the ones from the accused, challenging the sentences.
S Murugesan, a graduate in chemical engineering, a Dalit, fell in love with Kannagi, belonging to Vanniyar community. They secretly got married in May, 2003. On coming to know of this, Kannagi’s family members and others brought the couple to a cashewnut garden in Pudhukoorapet, forcibly administered poisonous substance in their mouths and later burnt the bodies.
As the local police mishandled the probe, the matter was entrusted with the CBI following an order from the High Court in 2004. The Special Court for SC/ST cases in Cuddalore in September, 2021 imposed the death sentence on Kannagi’s brother Marudupandian and life imprisonment to 12 other accused.
The bench, besides commuting the death sentence of Marudupandian, confirmed the life sentence in respect of eight other relatives and acquitted two others. The life sentence given to police sub-inspector Tamil Maran was reduced to two years RI.
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