None allowed to pay last respects to sister, says man from ostracised family
Pandu lived outside the village, he was not affected by the locals’ diktat. His unmarried sister Nagamma, who was living alone in the village, died on Wednesday.
VCK cadre interact with the family on Thursday
AMBUR: A Vanniyar family, facing ostracism for years in a village near Ambur after a youth in the family married a Dalit girl, on Thursday lodged a complaint with the police as the village diktat prevented locals from paying respects to a deceased woman of their family. According to sources, the village banned playing ‘parai’ during the wedding.
Sources said, Pandu (46) of Vannianadapuram, a hamlet of Mittalam village panchayat near Ambur, had married a Dalit girl in 2011. However, the daily wage worker kept the marriage a secret for three years.
Finally, when he revealed the truth, the villagers ostracised the family. The village, which includes hamlets of Kuttakandur and Vannianadapuram, has a total population of around 2,000.
As Pandu lived outside the village, he was not affected by the locals’ diktat. His unmarried sister Nagamma, who was living alone in the village, died on Wednesday.
When Pandu informed villagers about this, they refused to attend the condolence event and also banned playing of parai at the funeral. Pandu then complained to the Umarabad police.
“The villagers refused to interact with my family because I married out of the community. Till now they would torment us by throwing stones on the front door of my house or by taking away or breaking the light bulbs near my house.
Though I regularly complained to the police, they always acted in favour of village elders who refused to relent,” Pandu said.
Cadre of the local Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) unit came with drums to the funeral and arranged for the body to be removed on Thursday evening. Police are keeping a close watch on the situation.