Shocking! Assam women killed for alleged witchcraft, know more

A local group in Assam‘s Goalpara district allegedly beat a 56-year-old lady to death because they thought she was a witch.

Praneswari Rabha has been identified by the police as the deceased woman. Her family members claim that she vanished on Tuesday after leaving the house to feed the livestock.

Anita Hazarika, the assistant superintendent of police (ASP) for Goalpara district, spoke to the media on Wednesday, saying that although the incident is being investigated, the victim’s family has not yet filed a complaint.

More on the incident

“We received the information about the recovery of the dead body at around 9 pm yesterday, and a team from the Rongsai police outpost rushed to the spot. The woman’s hands and feet were tied, and prima facie suggests that it was a murder,” she said.

She left the house around 2 o’clock to feed the livestock but never came back, according to Eman Rabha, the deceased woman’s husband, who spoke with the police. It was uncommon that she didn’t show up after sundown. We called the police and began looking for her. Her body was discovered next to a bush at 9 o’clock, he claimed.

The woman used to practice witchcraft, and the locals told the authorities that this was the only reason she was killed.

“Her younger brother was also killed in a similar manner a few years ago, and I suspect that he was involved in witchcraft practice too,” a local resident said.

Eman and her family members have denied the witchcraft allegations.

Hazarika said that the body was sent to a local government hospital for a postmortem. “Once we get the report, the cause of death will be found and the investigation will proceed further,” she added.