The shocking incident of a youth beheading his five-year-old niece to cure himself of some illness in a village in Deogarh district recently has once again brought the issue of superstition-related crimes into sharp focus. The sad reality is that despite rising literacy levels, superstition continues to rule the roost in rural Odisha, especially in the tribal belt. Although the accused has been taken into custody and police are investigating the case, such arrests are unlikely to act as a deterrent against such crimes which are the product of a typically regressive mindset.
Tribal-dominated districts such as Sundergarh and Keonjhar remain most vulnerable to superstition-related violence because of the deep-rooted belief of the tribal community in black magic and sorcery. Keonjhar and Sundergarh have reported several cases of elderly men and women being beaten up and even killed on the suspicion of practising witchcraft.
What is unfortunate is that even the educated have been falling into the trap of godmen and tantriks (black magicians). Not long ago, a crowd watched the bizarre spectacle of a black magician trying to revive a dead woman, a victim of snakebite, near the morgue of Padampur sub-divisional headquarters hospital in Bargarh district.
Similar incidents have also taken place at some other hospitals in the state, raising disturbing questions not only about how ‘ojhas’ and ‘disaris’ were allowed to practice their art at hospitals in full public view, but also about our mindset in general. People who seek the help of these practitioners of the occult are either too desperate or have completely lost their faith in scientific methods of treatment.
While it is true that education has a major role to play in reducing the vulnerability of people to non-scientific practices, it offers no fool-proof guarantee. Even well-educated people have been found not only subscribing to such beliefs but themselves carrying out acts associated with the practice of the occult. A few years ago, a young college-going girl in western Odisha was allegedly killed by her friends in the fulfillment of a bizarre religious ritual. The accused, it later transpired, were the fanatic followers of a cult.
Incidentally, Odisha is among the few states of the country which has a law to curb superstition-related activities. The Odisha Prevention of Witch Hunting Act, 2013 is an important tool in the hands of the state agencies dealing with such crimes. But the law needs to be implemented in both letter and spirit. For this, it is important to ensure that police personnel, especially those posted in the vulnerable tribal areas, are not only highly motivated but also well versed with the provisions of this law. The government must also focus on creating social awareness against superstition-related activities. With determination and proper planning, such crimes can be curbed to a great extent.
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