Between 2016 and 2020, at least 300 murder victims in TN were Dalits: NGO

NGO Evidence, obtained information from police stations under the RTI Act; over 80% of these cases are still pending, the NGO said

During the last five years, between January 2016 and December 2020, around 300 persons who were murdered in Tamil Nadu belonged to the Scheduled Caste or Tribes, according to information obtained by Evidence, an NGO, through the Right To Information (RTI) Act. However, the reasons for the crime -- whether the murders were a fallout of caste-related issues or personal enmity -- were not available. Speaking to The Hinduon Tuesday, Evidence’s executive director A. Kathir said that the organisation had filed the application in all the 38 districts, but obtained information from only 33 districts. Some officials in Tirunelveli and Tirupur districts had refused to share the information citing “vague” reasons and if these were added, the total number of victims who belonged to SC/ST, could be around 350 during this period, Mr. Kathir said.