Honor Killing in Sindhanur, India: Three Sentenced to Death, Nine to Life Imprisonment

Five Family Members
Ages: 60, 55, 38, 35, 33
Killed: July 11, 2020
Location: Sindhanur
Country: India
Perpetrators: Twelve relatives of Manjula

In Sindhanur, a town in southern India, Mounesh married Manjula. Her family strongly opposed the marriage due to caste differences and repeatedly threatened him with death. When Mounesh filed a police complaint, the conflict escalated.

On July 11, 2020, twelve of Manjula’s family members attacked Mounesh’s house in Sindhanur, dragged five people outside, and murdered them in the street: his mother Savitramma (55), sister Shreedevi (38), brothers Hanumesh (35) and Nagraj (33), and father Eerappa (60). The murders were premeditated and extremely violent. The police arrested the perpetrators shortly afterward.

After nearly five years of legal proceedings, the court in Sindhanur sentenced the three main suspects – Sanna Fakirappa (Manjula’s father), Ambanna, and Somashekar – to death on April 8, 2025, along with a fine of 47,000 rupees (approx. €520) each. Nine others were sentenced to life imprisonment and fined 97,500 rupees (approx. €1,080) each.

What is an honour killing?

An honour killing is a murder in the name of honour. If a brother murders his sister to restore family honour, it is an honour killing. According to activists, the most common reasons for honour killings are as the victim:

refuses to cooperate in an arranged marriage.
wants to end the relationship.
was the victim of rape or sexual assault.
was accused of having a sexual relationship outside of marriage.

Human rights activists believe that 100,000 honour killings are carried out every year, most of which are not reported to the authorities and some are even deliberately covered up by the authorities themselves, for example because the perpetrators are good friends with local policemen, officials or politicians. Violence against girls and women remains a serious problem in Pakistan, India, Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Iran, Serbia and Turkey.