As ‘witch’ lynching continues to be as a big social menace in rural hinterland of Odisha especially tribal-dominated regions despite development, the Mayurbhanj district administration seems to have declared an all-out-war to stem the rot.
A few years ago, Mayurbhanj, 58.72 per cent of population of which are tribal, had hogged the headlines for back-to-back killings allegedly due to witchcraft. Then, the district administration had decided to go to the root of the problem and address it.
Between 2011 and 2015, as many as 47 murders having direct links with alleged withcraft had been carried out in the district. The administration analysed backgrounds of 40 such murders. It found 40 of 47, who were killed by their neighbours or fellow villagers, were illiterate.
Most prevalent in
tribal communities
Incidentally, 38 murders (over 80 per cent) had taken place among Santhal, Kohla and Ho tribal communities.
“Apart from illiteracy, the tribal communities especially Santhal and Kohla have strong cultural belief and folklore on witchcraft. We have been consistently trying to educate them as to how these blind beliefs are harming the social fabric,” said Rajesh Prabhaker Patil, Mayurbhanj District Collector, said.
The administration has been organising street plays at weekly local markets and spreading awareness, apart from cautioning them about consequence of killing people.
“Usually, before killing somebody, an influential section of village starts branding a particular person as witch and subsequently blame him or her for all misfortune over a period of time. After people get provoked, the crime takes place. We have constituted a rapid response team at block and gram panchayat level to identify vulnerable people,” said Mr. Patil.
As part of strategy, tribal leaders and head of caste council will be taken into confidence to counsel villagers. There have been efforts to educate tribal kids about harmful impact of blind beliefs..
Chronic illness main cause
The administration has found chronic illness as a principal cause behind such murders. The district collector said health system of vulnerable pockets of affected blocks will be strengthened.
The ‘witch’ lynching menace is not confined to Mayurbhanj district alone. Districts such as Ganjam, Keonjhar, Sundargarh, Rayagada, Gajapati and Koraput, have witnessed high incidences of such killings. Last year, a daily wage labourer and five members of his family were hacked to death near Joda in Keonjhar district. ‘Witchcraft’ was found to be the cause behind the massacre.
“As per the data collected from daily newspapers, around 381 people have been murdered during the last six years on suspicion of practising witchcraft. Fifty-six people were killed in 2010, 72 in 2011, 52 in 2012, 60 in 2013, 54 in 2014, 66 in 2015 and 29 in current year, ” said Debendra Sutar, Secretary of Odisha Rationalists Society.
