Hyderabad honour killing was not the only one. Here are some of the brutal honour killings reported. What is honour killing?

Highlights:

Hyderabad honour killing
What is an honour killing?
#Opinion
Honour Killing & Ego are directly proportional
Where the society lack empathy?

Hyderabad honour killing: A 26-year-old Dalit man, Billipuram Nagaraju, was beaten mercilessly before being allegedly killed for marrying an upper caste girl, Syed Ashrin Sultana, aka Pallavi. This union was against the bride’s family’s wish. Pursued by the woman’s brother, Nagaraju was thrashed with an iron rod and knife before he succumbed to his injuries.

“My Raju was killed in public view. Near the traffic signal. I felt at everyone’s feet. Why did no one come to help? Could they not see when he was being killed in front of them? Does not this world have eyes? If I had died, I would not be so shattered. I laid on my Raju to save him, but one person (attacker) kept pulling me back while others attacked him. Raju was wearing a helmet, but he broke his head. I had told Raju that I would not marry him, but I will never cheat him by marrying anyone. I will continue to live like this”, said Sultana (Nagaraju’s wife) in a pitiful state.

Saroornagar police have arrested Syed Mobin Ahmed for allegedly killing Nagaraju. However, Nagaraju’s wife claimed that five men were involved in the attack.

The two have been in a relationship since class 10. Sultana’s family turned down Nagaraju’s proposal to marry Sultana. Eventually, the couple eloped on 31st January and married in an Arya samaj ceremony. Suspecting being followed by Sultana’s family, the couple shifted to Visakhapatnam only to return to Hyderabad five days ago.

'Begged my brother to spare his life….', wife of man killed in Hyderabad narrates incident

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— ANI Digital (@ani_digital) May 6, 2022

What is an honour killing?

If you google it, “the killing of a relative, especially a girl or a woman, who is perceived to have brought dishonour on the family,” you will find this definition. However, there are several incidents when males were also victims of brutal honour killings. An honour related to religion, caste, or class, can only be protected and preserved by killing their own children because they chose love over a regressive, barbaric society.

However, the Hyderabad honour killing was not the only case. Union Minister of State for Home Ajay Kumar Mishra said that there were as many as 145 incidents of “honour killing” in the country between 2017 and 2019 in one of his Lok Sabha briefings. However, some of them did not even get a chance to be reported. The internet is filled with such incidents.

In 2021, some brutal honour killing cases came to the headlines from all across the nation.

Rajasthan, March 2021: A father murders his 19-year-old daughter for eloping with her Dalit paramour in the Dausa district.

Bihar, July 2021: In Muzaffarpur, a Dalit boy, 17, is beaten to death and his genitals cut off by the family of a Brahmin girl he was having an affair with.

Punjab, October 2021: A newly-wed inter-caste couple is murdered by the woman’s relatives in the Fazilka district.

Madhya Pradesh, November 2021: In Bhopal, a 55-year-old man allegedly rapes his daughter and then kills her and her six-month-old baby to avenge the “disgrace” she brought to the family by marrying a man from another caste.

Maharashtra, December 2021: In Aurangabad, a 17-year-old boy beheads his 19-year-old sister for marrying a man of her choice in Vaijapur’s Ladgaon village.

Honour crimes violate Articles 14, 15, 19,21, and 39 of the Indian constitution.

#Opinion

Honour Killing & Ego are directly proportional

Honour killing is a matter of choice, and where children are not ready to settle down with their parent’s wishes. In some cases, the ‘Ghar ki Izzat’ was at stake because children lost their virginity before the marriage. It is a sheer case of ego and a sense of superiority complex which arises when guardians are forced to think that they have started losing control over their children. And society plays along.

The gruesome act also warns that the eventual result will be the same if anyone dares to violate a specific community. And that’s how we succeed in safeguarding our honour.

Where the society lack empathy?

The killing video is making rounds on the internet, where the assassins can be seen brutally attacking the victim while the mob is busy recording video and clicking pictures. In the recent Hyderabad honour killing case, it can be clearly seen that the girl was begging everyone who was mutely watching, milking views over the person being killed. As per the Sultana, the attack continued for 15-20 minutes, but nobody stepped forward to save Nagaraju’s life but later came to click pictures of a dead body. Kyuki koi kise ke ‘personal matter’ Mai bolna nhi chahta, but internet par dalkar views jarur lena chahte Hai.

In the internet world, where it is undoubtedly the quickest mode of communication, it is now slowly becoming the only mode of communication. #justiceforNagaraju #hatecrime is on the list of top Twitter trends. However, his life could be saved if the Mookh Darshak dared enough to save him because it is easy to kill but needs the courage to save.

Mere demanding justice on social media is not enough?

Society can kill in the name of honour, but can’t protect in the name of humanity?

Don’t you think the bystanders were equally responsible for an innocent’s assassination?