The Supreme Court on Monday strongly condemned honour killings, calling for stringent punishment in such cases, as it upheld the conviction of 11 people involved in the 2003 murder of a young inter-caste couple in Tamil Nadu.

A bench comprising Justices Sudhanshu Dhulia and Prashant Kumar Mishra affirmed the Madras High Court’s 2022 verdict that had upheld the convictions, including those of two police officers, in the killing of Murugesan, a Dalit man, and Kannagi, a woman from the Vanniyar community.

The couple, both in their early twenties, had secretly married in May 2003. They were poisoned in full public view in July that year, in what the Court described as a “macabre act” driven by caste-based prejudice. The woman’s father and brother were identified as the masterminds behind the murder.

“The root of this crime is the deeply entrenched hierarchical caste system in India, and ironically, this most dishonourable act goes by the name of honour killing,” the Court observed in its 73-page judgment. “Honour killing must get a strong measure of punishment.”

The apex court awarded ₹5 lakh in compensation to Murugesan’s family, to be paid by the Tamil Nadu government. This amount is in addition to earlier compensation ordered by the trial and high courts.

The bench criticized the role of the police, stating that both officers were guilty under Section 217 of the Indian Penal Code and the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act for deliberately failing to register the FIR to shield the accused.

The Court lamented the prolonged delays in the trial, which concluded only in 2021—18 years after the crime. It attributed this to prosecution inefficiency and delaying tactics by the defence. Witnesses turning hostile further weakened the case but, the Court noted, sufficient evidence had ultimately established guilt beyond reasonable doubt.

Of the 15 individuals tried, 13 were convicted. Eleven were convicted of murder, with one initially receiving a death sentence (later commuted to life by the High Court), and the rest sentenced to life. Two police officers were also convicted; one received a life sentence, while the other’s term was reduced to two years.

The Court directed all those out on bail to surrender within two weeks to serve their remaining sentence.