Six persons assaulted for 'practising' black magic in Digboi

From our

Correspondent

DIGBOI, May 12: At least six villagers belonging to tea tribe community residing at Borbil No 3 under Digboi police station were allegedly assaulted by local villagers here on Thursday morning for allegedly practicing black magic causing ill omen to the villagers.

According to local police, a group of villagershad called for a meeting when suddenly the six persons comprising males and females were physically chastised by the gathering.

The injured were identified as Babita Mardi (33), Sambery Mardi (45), Budhani Mardi (45), AshamoniBaske (45), JamuMurmu (40) and Repo Murmu who were rescued by the local police and later sent to DigboiCivil Hospital. Talking to The Sentinel, Inspector ChandanMilli categorically denied the act to be related to witch hunting and said that the villagers had assaulted the victims on the pretext of witch hunting but ‘the real motive of the assaulting group was yet to be ascertained’. However, investigation to this effect was being carried out. A case has been registered at 81 /16 and prosecuted u/s 143 and 326 IPC.

On the other hand, to combat the mece and prevent the occurrence of such incidents again in near future, the team of Digboi Police in association with other enlightened groups comprising doctors organized an awareness programme in the affected village and tried to erase from the minds of the villagers the meaningless concept of witch hunting in the present civilized society citing various modern and scientific examples. Terming the incident as unfortute in the modern scientific society, Dr BivaskDas of AOD Hospital regretted that lack of education and awareness among the villagers in the interior belt was responsible for the eruption of such violence. As such, he expected the media and other socio- cultural organizations, including NGOs, to come forward and take necessary steps to deal with the mece of witch-hunting.

The awareness programme was conducted in the presence of  DrBivas Das of AOD Hospital, SDPO Margherita, OC Digboi, Gaonbura of Borbil, B. Hazarika, the COVDO Digboi PS, Laxman  Sharma, the joint secretary,Digboigarik Committee and villagers who witnessed and committed the act earlier this morning.