* Jharkhand.News *
* Woman branded witch, beheaded in Jharkhand * * April 20: Rimpi Hansda, a 60-year-old woman from Tirildih village in Mosabani block of Ghatshila sub-division, was beheaded by her neighbour Diku Hansda this morning after being branded a "witch". Around 9am, in a fit of anger, Diku attacked Rimpi, beheaded her and later carried her it to Mosabani po- lice station and surrendered himself. Diku had alleged Rimpi of practising witchcraft and killing his wife and children. "Around 10.30 am, Diku arrived at the police station and surrendered. In one hand, he was carrying the torso, while he held a spear in the other," said Sunit Kumar, the officer-in-charge of the Mosabani village. The incident triggered panic in the area, which is about 40km from the steel city. People from nearby villages started gathering at the police station. The police later had to call senior members from Tirildh village to pacify Diku, who had turned extremely violent by then and even tried to attack other women he saw at the police station. "It will take some time before we get the complete details, as Diku is yet to return to normality. Ever since the murder, he has been behaving in an abnormal manner. So we had to seek help from local villagers to cool him down," added Kumar. Preliminary investigation by the police and first-hand information available with local villagers revealed that Rimpa and Diku were next-door neighbours in the village. The complications between the two families started a couple of years ago, when Diku lost his wife and children. He had repeatedly threatened Rimpi of dire consequences and this morning took the extreme step by killing her in front of the entire village. An FIR has been lodged and Diku has already been taken into custody. "We are investigating the matter, but further details can only be revealed once he starts talk- ing or regains composure," added Kumar. The event has, however, brought to light the increase in the number of such cases in the Singhbhum-Kolhan region, where women are being killed and attacked on allegations of practising witchcraft. Only four days ago, the relatives of a woman in her mid-30s beat her to death in Seraikela-Kharsawan district. "In the last 10 years, this is the third case in which a man had beheaded a woman before bringing the victim's head to the police station. It is sad that such cases occur even nowadays," said Prem Chand, the president of Free Legal Aid Committee, a city-based NGO working against witchcraft practices in the region for over a decade. FLAC has recently launched a campaign of turning Kolhan into a model of superstitious-free zone in the state. "Incidents related to witchcraft are quite common in the tribal communities in East Singhbhum and West Singhbhum along with Seraikela and Kharsawan districts. Meanwhile, People's Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL), a human rights organisation, has decided to take up the matter. "We are not aware of today's incident, but we will immediately inform our office-bearers in Ghatshila to look into the matter and submit reports as soon as possible. Only then can the future course of action be determined," said Subr- ato Bhattacharjee, the PUCL president. godwas.com/?p=240 * * * * News TV * <http://www.indian-tv.blogspot.com/>* Blog *<http://www.jharkhand.org.in/blog> * Photo * <http://www.jharkhand.org.in/photo>* Music *<http://www.jharkhandi.org/music.htm> * Video <http://www.jharkhandi.org/video.htm> Live Chat <http://www.jharkhand.org.in/live> Directory <http://www.jharkhand.org.in/directory>** Testimonials *<http://www.jharkhand.org.in/directory> * Forum <http://yahoogroups.com/group/jharkhand>** Contact *<http://www.jharkhand.org.in/contact.htm> .
