Tirupur: The district adi dravidar welfare department on Thursday handed over Rs 25,000 each to four members of a dalit family who were allegedly forced to fall at the feet of a few gounders near Kangeyam.
The compensation was given to the family members after the department received a preliminary investigation report from the district rural police on the incident.
In the first week of February, one of the three goats of S Devi, 40, of arunthathiyar community, had strayed into the land of Sarasu, a gounder, at Theerthampalayam near Kangeyam. Following the incident, gounders allegedly convened a kangaroo court and forced Devi and her daughter to fall at the feet of gounders, in front of her husband and son on February 15.
The Kangeyam police booked Sarasu, Sekar, Manohar, Kavin and Senthil, all belonging to gounder community at Shanmugampalayam, under sections 294 (b) and 323 of IPC, and Scheduled castes/Scheduled tribes (Prevention of atrocities) Amendment Act, 2015.
Devi and her husband V Sakthivel came to the collectorate along with their two children on Thursday. “We all four received the cheques of Rs 25,000 each after we were asked to describe how gounders humiliated us,” Devi said.
When contacted, adi dravidar welfare officer Sakthivel told TOI: “The compensation was given on the basis of the preliminary investigation report. The victims will be given more compensation if the charges were proved before the trial court.”
