Gujarat: 50-Yr-Old Dead After Family Members Jump On His Chest To Ward Off "Evil Spirits"

A 50-year-old man from Gujarat was allegedly killed by members of his family, who reportedly jumped on his chest to ward off “evil spirits”. The police on Wednesday, November 14 said that following the incident, six people were arrested.

Ritual performed to ward off evil spirits

Reportedly, the victim was made to drink vermillion water after which the family members took turns to jump on his chest. Moreover, the man, who was a diamond worker, reportedly used to practice black magic and tantric rituals.

The deceased has been identified as Kanji Kumbhar, a resident of Katargam in Surat. According to NDTV, police inspector SM Joshi has been quoted by PTI as saying, “Mr Kumbhar’s three sons, including a minor, a daughter, his daughter-in-law and wife were arrested for allegedly killing him while performing black magic on him on Saturday night.”

He added that Kumbhar’s family members thought that he was “possessed” by evil spirits and they decided to ward it off by performing black magic. The incident happened on November 11, but the family reportedly left a dead Kumbhar in their residence and fled from Surat for their native village in Banaskantha district.

The Times Of India reported that the family, however, returned on November 13, and the deceased’s wife informed the police that they found her husband dead in the house. While the police first registered the case under accidental death, post-mortem report showed that his death was caused by due to shock and haemorrhage with severe injuries in the spleen and lungs. Reportedly, during interrogation, one of the family members broke down and narrated the incident.

All six have been arrested under sections 302 (murder), 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) and 193 (punishment for false evidence) of the Indian Penal Code.

The Logical Indian Take

Superstitions take yet another life and destroy yet another family. In the name of rituals, we do not hesitate to sacrifice innocent animals and are apparently even ready to jump on family members. The spread of education has managed to propel the society forward but incidents like these show how far we still have to go before we eradicate such irrational practices. The Logical Indian urges everyone to spread the light of awareness and education so that these tragic incidents do not occur.

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