Killing in the name of tribal superstitions

Now, superstitions are proving to be fatal. In lower Assam’s Kokrajhar district six people have lost their lives in as many days. The suspected reason? Witchcraft.  

The body of the sixth victim, a man, was recovered by the police on Thursday. He and his wife, whose body was found on Wednesday, were missing since Tuesday night. So far, the authorities have been unable to identify a single killer and have seemingly given up. “How would one contain the menace when an entire community is driven by superstitious beliefs?” asked Donald Gilsellon, deputy commissioner of Kokrajhar district.

The district is dominated by the Bodo tribe. A number of villages in the area practise black magic and witchcraft as part of their tribal customs. “The tribals worship certain deities. So, when a person falls sick, he would prefer going to a quack rather than a hospital. Most often, the quack will identify a woman and say the man has fallen sick because of witchcraft practised by the woman. Subsequently, the woman is killed,” Gilsellon said.

The superstitious beliefs are so ingrained in the villagers that they never come forward to give accounts of a killer or an incident. “They will remain tight-lipped and that makes our task doubly difficult. Initially we attributed this to the lack of education, but not anymore. Such killings are committed by even educated tribals,” he added.

The district authorities have set up some teams at block levels in a bid to contain the menace. “We have organised awareness programmes in coordination with ABSU (All Bodo Students’ Union). However, we won’t be able to contain this unless the people cooperate,” Gilsellon added.