Lives of a young couple, who married out of their caste and “economic status”, were snuffed out by the girl’s family in a case of “honour killing” in Gokak on Tuesday. The girl’s family hacked the couple to death in broad daylight, leaving the city in a shock. Twenty-year-old Nethra and 26-year-old Vittal Kuri married one-and-a-half-years ago, against the wishes of their parents and relatives. Nethra was from the rich family of Bagai brothers, while Vittal was from a poorer background. As they could not get their parents to agree to their relationship, they got married in a sub-registrar’s office and settled down at Loslur near Gokak, away from trouble. The couple, in the meanwhile, had a girl child, who is seven months old now.
The two families continued to fight frequently over the inter-caste marriage. But six months ago, elders from both families arrived at a compromise. The couple was allowed to take up a small house in Guruvarpet of Gokak three months back. Vittal started working at a fair price shop, while Nethra attended to their daughter. But on Tuesday, Nethra’s father and her two brothers barged into the couple’s house and allegedly hacked them to death. The police said the attackers hit the couple in the neck and left them to bleed to death. Gokak Police Circle Inspector Krishna Murthy said the girl’s family hatched the plot to kill the couple several months ago and executed the plan on Tuesday.