Chennai, Oct 11 (IANS): In a clear case of honour killing, a 24-year-old Dalit youth, Prabhakaran was stabbed to death by the father of a 17-year-old girl, with whom the deceased was having an affair.

The incident occurred on Saturday evening at Kumbakonam in Tamil Nadu. The girl, according to police belongs to a different caste.

Police arrested Manikantan, 52, a welder, and his accomplice, Karthi, 36, for abetting the crime. According to the police, Manikantan had warned Prabhakaran with dire consequences if he does not back off from the relationship with his daughter citing differences in caste.

On Saturday night, Prabhakaran was called by Manikantan to discuss some urgent matter. Karthi was sent to bring Prabhakaran and his friend Dayanidhi.

They were speaking to Manikantan and Karthi at Konulampallam road near Kamatchipuram in Kumbakonam district when suddenly both Manikantan and Karthi turned violent and hit Prabhakaran with a liquor bottle and then stabbed him with a knife.

Local people immediately rushed him to the Kumbakonam district hospital, where doctors pronounced him brought dead.

Prabhakaran's sister, Priyanka lodged a complaint with the Panthanallur police that both Manikantan and Karthi stabbed her brother to death. She said that this was conveyed to her by Dayanidhi who escaped during the altercation.

Police have registered a case under the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (prevention of atrocities) amendment Act as well as under sections, 342, 324, 302, 109 of the IPC. Both have been arrested and remanded to judicial custody.

A senior police officer told IANS, "In several parts of Tamil Nadu, killings in the name of caste are on the rise. We need to bring about awareness among people against such crimes. The solution is to provide proper awareness right from the school days."