The widow of Kevin P Joseph, who is believed to have been the victim of an honour killing, has confirmed the same before the District Additional Sessions Court in Kottayam, reports PTI.

The case is considered to be a first of its kind in Kerala as a Dalit Christian man was killed for his caste background.

Joseph’s wife Neenu Chacko told the court that her parents who were against her marriage killed her husband as he was from a lower caste. She said it is a case of honour killing as her relatives thought her marriage with a man of lower caste would hurt the honour of their family.

She also told the court that the police officials were initially uncooperative when reported that her husband had gone missing and that they were siding her father and brother. She also complained about the laxity in the manner of handling the the case and the refusal of police to conduct an investigation.

Chacko’s brother Sanu is booked as prime accused while her father is the fifth; a total of 14 are accused in the case.

On May 27, an armed gang in three vehicles forcibly took away Kevin and Anish, his relative. The abductors thrashed Anish severely and left him on the way. The next day the body of Kevin was found in a stream in Chaliyakkara in Kollam district. The post-mortem conducted at the Kottayam Medical College hospital had found 16 cuts and bruises on Kevin’s body.

The case triggered widespread protests in the state due to the manner in which it was handled, leading to subsequent progress in proceedings.

Joseph belonged to a poor Christian family, deemed Dalit, from Nattesseri in Kottayam, while the girl comes from a Latin Catholic background. The duo had registered their wedding two days before the former was abducted.

Also Read: Honour Killing In Kerala: ‘Dalit’ Christian Man Killed By Roman Catholic Girl’s Family