New Delhi: An 18-year-old Dalit youngster was brutally assaulted to death, allegedly over an inter-caste relationship with a 15-year-old girl, in Pratap Nagar block of Uttarakhand’s Tehri district on June 8. Police are investigating if the young man was killed by the family of the girl, who belongs to an ‘upper’ caste family, and have taken her father and grandfather into custody.According to the Indian Express, Senior Superintendent of Police, Tehri, Shweta Choubey said the victim, identified as Ketan Lal, received a phone call from the girl’s number on June 7, at around 11 pm, asking him to visit her house. Upon arrival, her father and grandfather allegedly physically assaulted him and his friend Diwakar Dimri with sticks, keeping them confined till the morning of June 8, the police officer said.After the incident, Ketan was rushed to the Baurari District hospital by his father, Dhanpal Lal, where he succumbed to the injuries.As per a Telegraph report, Ketan’s family claimed he was subjected to severe torture. The attackers allegedly used pliers to pull out his finger and toe nails, drove nails into his feet and inflicted serious damage to his genitals.Angry residents staged a demonstration outside the hospital, with his family refusing to accept the body for last rites until the accused were arrested.FIR filed, accused taken into custodyThe girl’s father, Yashveer Singh, and her grandfather, Vidya Singh, have been taken into police custody after a first information report (FIR) was filed under Sections 103(1) and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Section 3(2)(v) of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989.According to the complaint, the boy’s father received a phone call at around 5 am on Monday (June 8) asking him about his son’s whereabouts. After Dhanpal said Ketan was not home, the caller said his son and his friend had been beaten up, and that Ketan’s body had been thrown into a stream, reported Indian Express. After reaching the spot, Dhanpal found his son critically injured.He said, “I asked my son what had happened and he told me the girl’s father and his family called them to their house around midnight as [part of] a conspiracy to kill them. He said that throughout the night, they beat him brutally because he belonged to a Scheduled Caste and continued assaulting him until morning.” Dhanpal in the complaint has noted that Ketan was beaten with sticks, iron rods, batons and had iron nails pierced into his body and a video documenting the injuries has been handed over to the police.Demands for justice and political condemnationDescribing the incident as a egregious injustice against a member of the Scheduled Caste community, Ketan’s family has called for stringent action against those responsible.While speaking to Indian Express, Dhanpal said he did not know about Ketan’s relationship with the girl. He added, “It is a case of caste violence. My boy could not even tell me what they had done to him. He was asking for water and when I insisted, he could barely mouth the words that he had been tortured with rods. His body bore signs of assault and puncture by nails. We need security from the police; if they could kill my son, they can kill any of us.”Uttarakhand state secretary and Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) (CPI ML) leader Indresh Maikhuri condemned the killing on social media calling it “another example of how casteism can make people violent and barbaric, even resorting to murder.” Maikhuri demanded justice for Ketan and strict legal action against the accused.प्रेम का जवाब घृणा, हिंसा और हत्या ?टिहरी जिले के प्रतापनगर क्षेत्र के लंबगांव थाना क्षेत्र के देवल गांव के 18 वर्षीय युवक केतन पुत्र धनपत लाल को पीट- पीट कर मार डालने की घटना सामने आई है.खबरों में सामने आए ब्यौरे के अनुसार केतन की पड़ोसी गांव खोलगढ़ की युवती से मित्रता… pic.twitter.com/9uERnzFxEH— Indresh Maikhuri (@indreshmaikhuri) June 9, 2026The police have said that they are examining forensic evidence and investigating whether the girl’s family called Ketan to the house as a set-up. They are also interrogating the accused and collecting statements.19-year-old Dalit killed in Uttar PradeshA 19-year-old Dalit youth died in Uttar Pradesh’s Firozabad on June 8 – the same day as Ketan Lal – days after he and his 18-year-old friend were allegedly set on fire.The boy’s mother, Times of India reports, has lodged a police complaint which has been registered as an FIR, alleging that the girl’s family were opposed to their inter-caste affair.On June 5, the couple were rushed to Firozabad hospital and from there to Agra’s SN Medical College with critical burns. The woman died on June 6.