Two tribal women lynched in Birbhum on ‘witchcraft’ suspicion

Kolkata: Two middle-aged tribal women were allegedly lynched on suspicion of practising witchcraft at Harisarah village in Birbhum’s Mayureswar late on Friday. The deceased were identified as Lodki Kisku and Dolly Soren.
Their family members alleged that both were called out of their homes by Lakshmi Kanta Soren and others, tied with ropes, and beaten to death with sticks.Early on Saturday morning, family members found their bodies in a nearby irrigation canal.
Lakshmi, known to be a ‘debanshi’ or village priest, is a relative of the deceased. Rani Kisku, Lodki’s daughter, said: “My maternal brother and other villagers forcibly dragged my mother out of the house. My two brothers were away from home. We were unable to save her.”
The family members alleged that they were threatened not to inform police.
Surmil Maddi, Lakshmi’s wife, denied the allegation and said the two women were trying to cause harm to her son. “My husband slapped her but didn’t beat her up. They practised black magic. My husband was sleeping at home when the incident happened,” she said.
A large police force arrived at the village and arrested 15 persons on suspicion of involvement in the incident. The bodies were sent to Rampurhat Government Hospital for an autopsy.
A senior police officer said prima facie “witch-hunting” appeared to be the motive behind the killings.
The 15 accused were produced in court on Saturday. Four, including Lakshmi, were sent to six days’ police custody while the others were sent to 14 days in jail.