A total of 107 people have been killed in witch-hunting incidents in Assam since 2011, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Chandra Mohan Patowary informed the State Assembly on Saturday.
Eighty-four people died from 2011 till May 2016, while 23 more lives were lost till October this year since the BJP-led government came to power in the State, he said in response to a written question by Congress legislator Nandita Das.
The State government had notified the Assam Witch Hunting (Prohibition, Prevention and Protection) Act, 2015, in October last year and is carrying out awareness drives against the superstitious belief, Mr. Patowary said on behalf of Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal, who holds the Home portfolio.
Over 6,500 rape cases
Mr. Patowary also informed the Assembly that over 6,500 rape cases were registered in Assam during the last three and a half years. A total of 6,528 rape cases have been registered between April 2016 and October 2019. In Guwahati, 248 cases were registered.
