Woman thrashed by villagers for alleged witchcraft

In yet another incident of mob fury, a woman was brutally thrashed by villagers for alleged witchcraft at Kumahari Basti under Chas Mufassil Police Station on Thursday late evening.

According to police, Jhunia Devi (41) a resident of Kumahari village got multiple injuries as she was badly thrashed by few locals. A case has been registered and investigation is on, said police.

Dozens of onlookers witnessed the merciless beating of the woman who was alleged of witchcraft. The villagers took turns and beat the women one after the other, said an eyewitness. “The villagers also attacked on Jhunia with sharp weapons, resulted into deep injuries to her,” he added.

Notably, a large number of women have been tortured, subjected to all kind to inhuman harassment and killed after they were branded the witch in Jharkhand during the past few years.

According to a recent study, more than 2,500 women were killed after being accused of practicing witchcraft in past 15 years while about 900 women have been killed since the birth of the state after branded as witch told Punam Sinha a social worker (ORANGE) spreading awareness against this social menace across the state.

This heinous incident is not new for our country. According to the National Crime Bureau statistics, nearly 200 to 150 women are killed every year in India after being tagged as ‘witches’.

To prevent the witchcraft killing, Witchcraft Prevention Act 1999 was formulated during undivided Bihar, which was adopted by the Jharkhand government in 2001. “Law is not sufficient to curb the witchcraft cases. The real culprits are Ojhas and they move scot-free. There is only two years imprisonment provision for the Ojhas who are real instigators behind every case, said Mamta Singh another social activist.

Ojhas practice should be banned and they should be involved in other economic activities. Ojhas earn money by practice and get free chicken, rice and other domestic things, she added.

Even police officials find difficulties in dealing with the problem. Police officials term the issue as social problem and awareness can only end the problem.

“We act when we get information. The important point is that this is a social issue and only awareness can end the problem”, said a police official.