A 42-year-old woman and her two daughters were allegedly assaulted and thrashed by their distant relatives on suspicion of being a witch. The two daughters are aged 12 and 17.
The incident occurred in Dabhva village in Dahod’s Sagtala taluka late in Ahmedabad on Sunday night, June 14. The victim’s mother-in-law on Monday, June 15, filed an FIR naming seven people from the village.
The complaint filed at the Sagtala police station stated Kanaben Bariya and her daughters were at her farm when the attack took place. The accused attacked her and her two daughters axes and sticks. They accused Bariya of being a witch and causing problems in their family. When her daughters tried to intervene, they were assaulted too.
The men said that their family members were falling sick and their cattle were dying because of the woman. They threatened to kill her and her daughters if she did not stop her witchcraft.
The victim’s mother-in-law witnessed the assault and rushed to inform her son and raised an alarm. The accused fled the spot as they saw villagers approaching.
The three victims were rushed to the nearest health centre, which referred them to the Godhra civil hospital for further treatment. Police confirmed that their condition is stable now.
‘The families also had some old issues pertaining to a piece of land in the village. We are also investigating in that direction. So far no one has been arrested, investigations are underway,’ The Indian Express quoted investigating officer Amar Puwar as saying.
All seven accused have been booked under IPC sections 143 (member of an unlawful assembly), 147 (Punishment for rioting), 148 (Rioting, armed with deadly weapon), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 504 (Intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace), 506 (2) (criminal intimidation).
