Mandya: Belakavadi Police have solved a case of ‘honour killing’ of young couple from Hosur in Krishnagiri district of Tamil Nadu whose bodies were recovered from a lake near Shivanasamudra in Mandya district on Nov.14 and 16 by arresting six persons involved in the crime. A report of the killing was published in SOM dated Nov.17.

Addressing a press meet here yesterday, Mandya SP Shivaprakash Devaraj said that the bodies of the young couple, identified as Nandish and Swathi of Choodaganapalli village, Hosur taluk in Krishnagiri of TN were found in SBR Lake in Shivanasamudra and Belakavadi Police had registered a case.

Continuing, he said that the Belakavadi Police, who took up the investigation, came to know that it was a case of ‘honour killing’ and have arrested Swathi’s father 43-year-old Sreenivas, her uncles 50-year-old Venkatesh, 48-year-old Ashwath and Venkataraju, relative 26-year-old Krishnaswamy and his friend Lakshman besides adding that the Police have seized mobile phones and have launched a hunt to nab another accused Swaminathan, who    is absconding.

The SP said that during interrogation, the Police came to known that though Swathi and Nandish were living in the same village, they belonged to different communities and were in love since a year. They got married despite opposition from their parents and were living in Hosur, the SP added.

The SP further said that Nandish and Swathi had been to a programme of actor Kamal Hassan in Hosur and Swathi’s distant relative Krishna who saw them informed the matter to Swathi’s uncle Ashwath. When Swathi’s father Srinivas learnt about it, he along with Swathi’s uncles Venkatesh, Ashwath and Venkataraju went to Hosur in a Tata Sumo vehicle driven by Swaminathan.

On reaching Hosur, they met Swathi and Nandish and convinced them of solving the issue at a Police Station and took them in the vehicle at about 11 pm and proceeded on Kanakapura Road. When they came near the lake at Shivanasamudra at about 3 am, the group assaulted the young couple, tied their legs and hands and threw them into the lake though the couple were still alive, said the SP.

SP Shivaprakash Devaraj, ASP A.R. Balaramegowda and Malavalli Dy.SP Shailendra supervised Malavalli Rural Circle Inspector R. Srikanth, Belakavadi Sub-Inspector Umavathi, Special Crime Detection staff R. Prabhuswamy, Riyaz Pasha, P. Mahadevu, V. Subramani, Mohan Kumar and others in the nabbing operation.