TIRUVANNAMALAI: The funeral procession of a 56-year-old Dalit woman, at Mothakkal village in Thandrampet taluk, Tiruvannamalai district, was halted by authorities on Monday for attempting to pass through a common path otherwise used by both Dalits and caste Hindus of the village.
“Permitting them could have resulted in unnecessary law and order issues,” official sources told TNIE. Notably, no objection was raised by the caste Hindus regarding the use of the common path.
The deceased woman, T Kiliyammal, died in Chennai on Sunday and her body was transported to her native village of Mothakkal for cremation. The next day, the members of the SC community, decided to use the common route — a tar road — for the funeral procession instead of the customary route — a mud road — used by Dalits from the village exclusively for the purpose. A part of the customary route has been encroached upon by a Dalit villager, sources said.
However, when they attempted to pass through the common route, police and revenue officials blocked the procession and advised the family members to use the customary path.
“We have been using the customary route for generations. We requested the authorities to use the common path this time, but police and revenue officials stopped us. This is unacceptable,” said a Dalit resident.
Later in the night, the woman’s body was taken along the customary route and cremated without incident.
Caste Hindus have no objection
Though police said permitting Dalits could have resulted in unnecessary law and order issues, caste Hindus in the area have raised no objection regarding the use of the common path by the SC members