In recent days, Lallantop has been a topic of discussion on social media, particularly regarding a viral video in which the media organization claims that 44 Dalits were killed in Tamil Nadu in Kilvenmani massacre.
In this video, journalist Nikhil states that there are numerous examples from South India that shows the level of discrimination Dalits have faced. He explains that when India gained independence in 1947, Dalits and backward classes believed that the Constitution would bring social uniformity, but that did not happen in reality—these changes remained only on paper. Even after independence, conflicts between Dalits and Brahmins did not end.
Over the years, many such cases have reached the threshold of justice, but Dalits and backward communities have often been denied justice. One such tragic incident took place in 1968. On the night of December 25, in Kilvenmani village of Thanjavur district, Tamil Nadu, 44 Dalits, including women and children, were burned alive. Despite the brutality of the crime, none of the perpetrators were punished, even though this was one of the earliest and most violent crimes in post-independent India.
Nikhil, while discussing the massacre, said that the Kilvenmani massacre was another phase in the centuries-old battle for supremacy between Brahmins and Dalits. He further stated that to understand this, we need to look back into history.
It is believed that between 500-750 AD, Brahminism rose in South India. From the Pallavas of Kanchi to the Chalukyas of Badami and the Pandyas of Madurai, these rulers did everything they could to keep the Brahmins and temple priests happy. They were given money, gold coins, tax-free lands, and donations of cattle. In the royal courts, they held a distinct level of respect.
As a result, over time, the Brahmin community gradually monopolized most of the land in South India. These lands were worked on by lower-caste Hindu laborers who did not own any land of their own. Due to this, they had to depend on the upper caste for their survival. Frustrated by these conditions, some Dalits began embracing Buddhism, which further widened the gap between the upper caste and Dalits.
This video is being widely criticized on social media. Sharing the video, the handle Shubham Shukla wrote, “Brahmins are poor, oppressed, exploited, deprived, oppress them and then call them oppressors? Make up false stories? Spread hatred against them. He is a Brahmin, what can he do? Here the killers of 44 Dalits are landlords/goons. But a Brahmin has been introduced here too? This person named Nikhil is repeatedly taking the name of Brahmin in this video. This painful/heartbreaking incident has also been made into Brahmin VS Dalit? This person has left Lallantop. But who knows how many such false stories would have been created?”
ब्राह्मण गरीब है, पीड़ित है, शोषित है, वंचित है, उस पर अत्याचार करो फिर उसे ही अत्याचारी बता दो? झूठी कहानियाँ बना दो? उसके ख़िलाफ़ नफ़रत फैला दो।
— Shubham Shukla (@ShubhamShuklaMP) February 14, 2025
ब्राह्मण है, क्या ही कर लेगा? यहां 44 दलितों के हत्यारे जमींदार/लठैत हैं। लेकिन यहां भी ब्राह्मण घुसेड़ दिया?
निखिल नामक ये… pic.twitter.com/KT9DX07QO0
Yati Sharma asserted, “For the last several days, I have seen many videos of this brother on social media, the truth of many videos is beyond the truth told by him. Most of the videos have been discounted If you have millions of followers, will all your nonsense be considered true? This will not happen.”
पिछले कई दिनों से सोशल मीडिया पर कई वीडियो इन भाई साहब के मैंने देखे कई वीडियो की सच्चाई इनके द्वारा बताई गई सच्चाई से परे है
— Yati Sharma (@yati_Official1) February 14, 2025
ज्यादातर वीडियो में छूट परोसा गया है
लाखों की संख्या में फॉलोअर्स है तो तुम्हारा हर बकवास सत्य मान लिया जायेगा ?ऐसा नहीं होगा #माफी_मांग_लल्लनटॉप pic.twitter.com/FhlMsgoJsN
Mohit Bharat stated, “Brahmin brothers today you have been declared the culprit of ‘Kilvenmani massacre. You are silent. Tomorrow they will declare you…a criminal of some terrorist incident. Why should you suffer false accusation of a crime which you have not committed? The criminals in this case are from the ‘OBC landlord’ class.”
ब्राह्मण भाइयों…
— Mohit Bharat (@MohitBharatYBP) February 14, 2025
आज तुम्हें 'किल्वेनमनी नरसंहार' का अपराधी बता दिया गया है…तुम चुप हो।
कल तुमको…किसी आतंकवादी घटना का अपराधी भी घोषित कर देंगे ये।
जो अपराध तुमनें किया ही नही…उसका झूठा आरोप क्यों सहना ?
इस केस में अपराधी 'OBC जमींदार' वर्ग से हैं।#माफी_मांग_लल्लनटॉप pic.twitter.com/hZ5wcEl9r4
What is the truth behind The Lallantop claim? Is it true or just a fabricated story? In our investigation, we dug deep into the claim to uncover the truth.
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Fact Check
During our investigation, we first found a report on The Hindu’s website. According to this report, on the night of December 25, 1968, 44 people from the Scheduled Caste community were burnt alive in Kilvenmani village, Tamil Nadu. These individuals were working to demand higher wages, but landlord Gopal Krishna Naidu and his companions locked all the workers inside a hut and set it on fire, burning them alive. The report further states that the session court sentenced the accused to 10 years in prison. However, the high court later acquitted Gopal Krishna Naidu and others on the grounds that the arsonists were unaware that 42 people were inside the hut. Gopal Krishna Naidu was later murdered by a member of a leftist party.
Next, we came across a report from South First, written by Tamil Nadu-based Dalit activist, social worker, and writer Shalin Maria Lawrence. She wrote that on the night of December 25, 1968, in Keezhvenmani village near Nagapattinam in the Thanjavur district of Tamil Nadu, feudal landlords from the Naidu caste locked 44 Dalits from the Devendra Kula Vellalar and Paraiyar communities inside a hut and burned them alive. She described this as one of the most tragic massacres in Dalit history.
Further investigation revealed that a total of 23 people were charged in the case. Among them, the main accused was Gopal Krishna Naidu, along with 22 other co-accused landowners. Naidu was sentenced to 10 years in prison, but after an appeal in 1975, the court acquitted him. After his release, Mr. Amalraj, a member of the same Dalit community, murdered Naidu. This incident took place on December 25, 1980—the same date when, in 1968, 44 Dalits were burned alive. Amalraj had witnessed the mass murder as a child.
This article also highlights that even 100 years after the abolition of caste-based slavery, the attitudes of feudal caste landowners remained unchanged. Caste power always outweighed political power—no law or regulation could be imposed on them. By the 20th century, they had modern ways to continue the caste system.
In Tamil Nadu, laborers came from various backward castes, but 80% of them were Dalits. Being landless and excluded from other caste-based occupations, they were forced to work as farm laborers. The landowners took advantage of their miserable socio-economic conditions and paid them extremely low wages.
However, this was not the 19th century when these laborers were not paid at all—the country had gained independence and was on the path of development. Yet, feudal lords paid these laborers barely more than nothing. While workers from other backward castes were also underpaid, Dalit laborers received even lower wages. Instead of being paid in money, they were mostly given very small amounts of rice from the harvested crop as wages.
With the onset of the Green Revolution, agricultural production increased, and farm workers realized that it was time for a wage hike. All they wanted was just half a kilogram more rice as payment. A Tripartite Agreement was even signed to ensure this, but the landlords did not fulfill their promise.
In response, the workers, along with the Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPM), started a new militant movement. This movement was no longer just about a wage hike—it was about dignity. They demanded that they be treated as humans, not like animals, and be given respect. They wanted an end to the feudal lords’ exploitation of their physical labor.
At that time, there was a slight rise in communist ideology in the country, influenced by global socialist movements and the Russian Revolution of 1917. It made the workers realize that they deserved fair compensation for their labor.
In November 1968, Gopal Krishna Naidu, the head of the Landowners’ Association, held a press conference, during which a conspiracy was planned—to eliminate anyone who opposed them.
On the night of December 25, 1968, when the Dalit men were away from the village seeking legal help for Pakkiri’s murder, Naidu, along with 22 other landowners, surrounded the village. Only women, children, and the elderly were left in their homes.
The landlords blocked all exits and began shooting mercilessly at the people. In panic, 44 individuals ran into a nearby hut to take shelter. Naidu, knowing they were inside, locked the hut from the outside, poured kerosene all over it, and set it on fire.
After this, our team contacted Shalin Maria Lawrence. When we discussed her Lallantop video, Shalin told us that the video contained false information. She clarified that the 44 Dalits were not killed by Brahmins, but rather by Naidu and other OBC castes.
According, to the website BCMBCMW.TN.GOV.IN which belongs to the Backward Classes, Most Backward Classes, and Minorities Welfare Department of the Government of Tamil Nadu, Naidu is recognized as the OBC caste in Tamil Nadu.
Apart from that, the National Commission for Backward Classes (NCBC) includes certain Naidu subgroups in its central list of Other Backward Classes (OBCs) for Tamil Nadu. For instance, the Boya (Naidu) community is listed as an OBC in the state.
In conclusion, The Lallantop’s claim that 44 Dalits were burned to death by Brahmins in the 1968 Kilvenmani massacre is false. The accused belonged to the Naidu caste, which falls under the OBC category in Tamil Nadu and other southern states, not the Brahmin community.
| Claim | The 1968 Kilvenmani massacre of Dalit in Tamil Nadu was carried out by individuals from the Brahmin community. |
| Claimed by | The Lallantop |
| Fact Check | The Lallantop falsely claimed Brahmins were behind the 1968 Kilvenmani massacre; the accused were OBC Naidus. |
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