The Madurai Special Sessions Court on Tuesday sentenced 10 accused persons to life imprisonment in a caste crime case in Tamil Nadu, reported NDTV.

On March 5, Judge T Sampathkumar had convicted 10 out of 17 accused persons for the murder of a Dalit man in 2015 in Namakkal district, Tamil Nadu.

The deceased Gokulraj, was abducted and killed after he was suspected to have been in a relationship with a woman from the Gounder community.

On June 23, 2015, Gokulraj was abducted from the Tiruchengode Arthanareeswarar temple, and the next day his body was found beheaded near the tracks at Pallipalayam.

The prime accused in the case, S Yuvaraj, the president of the Kongu Vellalar caste outfit called Dheeran Chinnamalai Peravai, was given life imprisonment on three counts, and five others have been convicted on a double life term. Two other convicts have been sentenced to life imprisonment as well as a five-year imprisonment and a Rs 5,000 fine, according to The News Minute.

The accused persons were booked under Indian Penal Code sections that provide punishment for kidnapping, criminal conspiracy, extortion, harbouring an offender, and the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989.