Sootea/Biswanath Chariali, Aug 27 - Despite ensuring a close shave for two persons accused of witchcraft in a village in Sootea of Biswanath district, police and administration are having a tough time fighting the scourge of superstition here, as the villagers still refuse to entertain logical arguments over a �supernatural� command branding the duo as witches.
The victims Jamini Tanti (50) and Nandeswar Tanti (65) say their escape on August 22 was �miraculous� in a situation when nearly 500 villagers had gathered for their public hearing. But, security to their life and livelihood is still a matter of concern. After being branded as witches by as many as six self-proclaimed devis, normal life is not an easily negotiable deal in their village.
Diplunga Tea Estate, a unit of Dekorai Tea Estate in Biswanath, has been witnessing an eerie atmosphere for past two weeks over the incident, bringing to the fore an urgent need of a targeted social intervention into the superstition-related cases in the State, and more legal tools to curb the menace in its offing.
Officer in-charge of the Sootea Police Station, Alimuddin Ahmed, said only a timely intervention managed to save the two lives, but their rehabilitation still is a major challenge, especially with Jamini�s son Nirmal turning against his mother.
�Jamini is a socially active permanent worker of Diplunga and has cordial relationship with all. Problems started when two women, allegedly possessed by goddess during a local puja, accused Jamini of killing her three-year-old grandson who died nearly a month back. Nandeswar, a bez (local healer), was accused of helping her,� said Biswaji Tanti, an office-bearer of the local unit of the Assam Chah Mazdoor Sangha.
More disturbing has been spurt in the cases of devi possessing local women and making forecasts about proving the crimes of Jamini and Karu next Tuesday (August 30).�After the incident, Diplunga has witnessed as many as 18 self-proclaimed devis, villagers told this correspondent.
�We organised an awareness meeting in Diplunga with several eminent personalities of the area and the tea garden management on August 24. But the villagers won�t allow the victims to speak. Though a section of villagers today assured us of no further devi episode in the garden, rehabilitation of victims can be done only after ascertaining total normalcy,� added the Sootea OC.
�Remoteness of the areas and deeply embedded belief in superstitions are the biggest problems the administration faces while dealing with such cases,� said outgoing Deputy Commissioner of Biswanath, PG Jha. �Mostly, it takes two to three days for such incidents to turn dangerous. We had put the village headmen on alert to report the incident as soon as any rumour is heard,� he added. ��
Though it is the first such case under the Sootea Police Station,�the area is not alien to the heinous superstition-related crimes. In nearby Bhimajuli, a woman was beheaded in 2015 on accusations of witchcraft, and a man and two women were beaten up severely in June this year on similar accusations.
�Poor rural communities with lack of access to health services and education often fall prey to such superstitious traps. It is further aggravated by longstanding belief in superstitions, which take even educated people in its fold,� said anti-witch hunting crusader Dibyajyoti Saikia, who held an awareness meet for the leaders of different administrative lines of Diplunga.
�There are several motivating factors behind such crimes, including greed for property, jealousy, or even a tendency to gain some social attention through such tricks. It can be an organised crime as well. Unfortunately, involvement of an entire community makes it more pervasive,� he added.
Saikia, however, believes that strengthening the legal mechanism to deal with such sensitive cases would go a long way on putting a check on the so-called �witch hunting�.
On the other hand, the victims, who want to return home, fear ostracism. Jamini is heartbroken, unable to figure out why she has been accused of practising witchcraft.
�My grandson was born premature with a birth-weight of a little over one kilogram. He kept ill most of the times. We could not save him despite taking him to Tezpur for treatment,� she said.