Government plans law against black magic in Kerala

The State government is considering a law to prevent exploitation of public in the name of black magic, Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala has said.

The State government is considering a law to prevent exploitation of public in the name of black magic, Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala has said.

He said cheating, extortion, confidence trickery, and torture in the name of occult practices were rampant in Kerala.

Crimes

The so-called occult practices had resulted in scores of crimes, including the murder of a woman, this year.

A majority of black magic- related crimes go unreported.

The vulnerable lot

Rural folk, women, children, uneducated poor, and citizens under severe physical, financial or mental distress were among those most vulnerable to exploitation at the hands of soothsayers, oracle, mystics, and black magicians who seemed to thrive on propagating superstition.

The Maharashtra Assembly has passed a law against such practices. Kerala would consider one on similar lines.