A 60-year old tribal woman was accused by villagers in Bihar to be practicing in witchcraft and beaten to death by them. Apparently her ‘spells’ couldn’t cure their mindsets.
A witchcraft practitioner identified her as the one who was responsible for all maladies of the village.
A case has been registered against six villagers under the Prevention of Witchcraft Practices Act. No arrest has been yet.
I wasn’t aware that there was such an Act; Bihar’s is the first of its kind, passed in 1999. The name of this Act is pretty strange and belies the fact that it’s meant to protect those accused of witchcraft and punish the offending name-callers and abusers. A Jharkhand NGO, Free Legal Aid Committee (FLAC) campaigns against the practice of witch-hunting and offers aid to those accused.
An article at OneWorld South Asia explains how, unsurprisingly, old, widowed, or otherwise unprotected women are more vulnerable to accusations of witchcraft. It sounds too familiar–those who are not conforming in some way become targets.
Superstition is often the chief reason. This factor is strongly linked to the lack of medical care and awareness in rural areas. In absence of health care facilities, there is exploitation by ‘ojhas’ or witch doctors who profit from the villagers’ ignorance.
Land grabbing, property disputes and revenge are other major causes behind such accusations in most states. The above examples reflect that such labeling has become a common form of violence against women. It is now a pretext for suppressing women and gaining personal interests.
In many backward districts of Rajasthan, such as Dungarpur, Banswara, Kota, Udaipur, Tonk, Chittorgarh and Bhilwara, it has been observed that women who are mentally ill or show abnormal behaviour are often branded as witches and ill treated by society.
See also this post at Sepia Mutiny.
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