A marriage that began more than seven years ago is now at the centre of a murder investigation in Rajkot, where a 27-year-old Scheduled Caste man was allegedly killed in broad daylight.
Vimal Dharmendra Vaniya was attacked near Bhaktinagar Circle around 2 pm on September 24 while he was with a friend. Police suspect that three men were involved in the assault, including Vimal’s brother-in-law, Kamlesh alias Kano Lakha Dhandal.
The case is now being examined as a possible honour killing, with police suspecting that Vimal’s inter-caste relationship with Dhandal’s sister could have been behind the attack. The motive, however, remains part of the investigation and has not been established in court.
A relationship that survived years of opposition
The couple’s relationship, according to the FIR filed by Vimal’s mother Bharti Dharmendra Vaniya, had faced opposition long before the killing.
Vimal and the woman had reportedly left home together more than seven years ago. Her family later traced them and brought her back. Police say Dhandal was involved in finding her at that time and taking her home.
The woman was later married to someone else. But roughly a year later, she left her parents’ home again and returned to Vimal.
The couple then lived in different towns before eventually coming back to Rajkot, where they stayed with Vimal’s mother and stepfather. They also had a child, born around 11 months before Vimal’s death, according to the complaint.
It is this history of an inter-caste relationship, repeated separation and reunion that has led investigators to examine whether the killing was connected to family opposition to the marriage.
Attack in the middle of the day
On September 24, Vimal was at Bhaktinagar Circle when the alleged attackers confronted him. Police say the three men restrained him and attacked him with sharp-edged weapons. Vimal suffered multiple stab injuries and was rushed to Rajkot Civil Hospital. He was declared dead by doctors.
A little later, his mother was informed about the attack by one of Vimal’s friends. She and her daughter-in-law went to the hospital, where they found Vimal on a stretcher.
Brother-in-law named in FIR
The complaint lodged by Bharti names Dhandal as one of the alleged attackers, along with two unidentified men.
Police have registered a murder case against the three and also invoked provisions of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act and the Gujarat Police Act. According to the police, teams had been formed to trace the accused.
At present, the two other alleged attackers have not been identified, and the information available does not indicate that the accused had been arrested.
Why police are looking at an honour killing angle
The possible honour-killing angle comes from the alleged history surrounding Vimal’s relationship with Dhandal’s sister. Vimal belonged to a Scheduled Caste, while police have described the couple as belonging to different castes. Their relationship had reportedly faced opposition in the past, but they eventually lived together and had a child.
That history has prompted police to suspect that resentment over the relationship may have played a role in the killing. For now, though, that remains an investigative theory rather than a proven motive.
The case is being investigated with the alleged role of Dhandal and the identities of the other two attackers still to be established.
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