Are you a woman with your own choices, opinions, perspectives? Are you a woman who swears without any fear of getting judged? Then thank the universe for not giving you the fate of those women who are under-privileged and are time to time falsely accused of being a witch!
Yes, we are indeed talking about the so-called Witch-hunting practice in India, which is timely and relevant since 1726 till now. In India it is also called Dayan Pratha. This practice makes us think about how far we are from giving the women of our country equal rights! Basic constitutional rights.
This practice is so random that any woman (mainly Adivasi, Harijan) can be accused on this ground by one or a group of individuals, and without any proper proof, she will be brutally murdered along with her children and sometimes the husband. But the sad part is, it is the family itself who accuses the woman of the family and brand her as the Witch.
The accusation can be based on many grounds like
- Difference in religious belief
- Outspoken woman
- Dowry
- Personal grudges, etc.,
This practice is prevalent in the Indian states of Bihar, Jharkhand, Orissa, West Bengal, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Chhattisgarh. One can find people who practice witch-hunting in villages and tribal settlements.
Some examples of the women who were the victims of this practice:
- Pinki, a mother of two, from the state of Jharkhand, was falsely accused by her in-laws as a Witch because she reduced her religious practices after getting married (she DID NOT stop it, just reduced it), dark complexion. Her husband had also beaten her to death, but she survived. She says `her life was saved because of the law of land, but that law could not help her soul survive. That episode broke her from within’
- Debjani Bora, an Assam based national athlete, won several medals for India was brutally assaulted by the villagers just because someone rumored her as a Witch!
- Ms. Munda and her 4 children, living in a tribal settlement near Sundergarh district were murdered at night when they were asleep, and their bodies were found in the well. The guy who was behind the murder claimed himself as the village’s witch doctor! He said `Munda was responsible for casting spell on another family in the village.
These cases are just a few examples of the Witch-hunting practice, from the past 5 years. If we check statistics, Jharkhand and Odisha is the most affected states. From 2016-2018 Jharkhand reported 27 cases and Odisha reported 24 cases of witch-hunting and murder.
Several states have enforced their law which prevents witch-hunting from being practiced, but sadly this only happened from the year of 2005 when Bihar enforced it is Prevention of witch practice act. Subsequently, other laws came in such as Rajasthan prevention of Witch hunting Act, 2015, Odisha prevention of witch-hunting act, 2013 (became enforceable in 2014) and lastly Chhattisgarh Tonali Pratadna Niravarn act, 2005.
All the violators of these laws are punishable under
- SEC 302- Charge of Murder
- SEC 307 – an attempt to murder
- SEC 323- hurt
- SEC 376- rape
- SEC 354- outraging a woman’s modesty
A Police officer reported one of the murderer’s statement – `A woman’s blood, who has been branded as Witch, falls on the ground, her power of sorcery gets demolishes.’ This man was not at all shameful for the hideous act, he committed. These awful humans who claim to be the Witch hunters should be hanged to death. This can be a true Feminist movement of our country. To all the readers, I want you to think of your mother, sister, wife, or daughter and imagine what if they are harassed like these women. That feeling is the true reaction to this article.
0 Comments