Witch hunting still claims lives in Assam

In yet another incident of alleged witch hunting, an old man brutally beaten to death at Bakaliaghat village in Karbi Anglong district on suspicion of practicing witchcraft.

The victim was identified as Soseng Teron, who was allegedly killed by a mob.

The old man accused of practising black magic and was also blamed for the sudden loss of lives in the village.

Police have arrested 19 persons so far in connection with the case.

Witchcraft is a barbaric act of superstition. For long, it has been a part of the tribal customs, especially recognized in remote rural areas. In actual fact witch hunting is rampant today, and the rate of witchcraft killing is alarmingly high among tribal communities and other minor communities.

According to data available from the National Crime Record Bureau, more than two thousand and five hundred people were suspected of practicing witchcraft and have been killed in India over the last fifteen years.

Although there is a law against witchcraft killing in the country, various steps have been taken, both by government agencies and non-government organizations to stop it, but branding mortals as witches and then thrashed them till death, continue unabated.