New Delhi: Four people have been arrested in Jhanjhri Mohalla of Jharkhand’s Giridih town for allegedly beating up three people and forcing them to consume human excreta, on the suspicion of practising witchcraft.
Police are yet to nab one accused in the case who is currently absconding, stated news agency ANI.
The victims include two women who were forcibly asked to consume human excreta. This incident took place last week and came to the notice of the police through a viral social media video on Monday.
The accused suspected that the victims used to perform rituals that made people fall ill in the area, stated the police.
The accused who were arrested in the case have been identified as Veera Das (50), Hari Das (32), Jharia Devi (30) and Shanti Devi (48), said Nagar police station in-charge Adikant Mahto.
In yet another incident this month, four elderly tribals including two women were lynched by 10 to 12 unidentified miscreants in Gumla district of Jharkhand on the suspicion that they were practising witchcraft. The incident took place on Saturday near the Sisayi police station.
Similarly, in the month of January, six persons were arrested for killing five members of a family on suspicion of witchcraft in Koira area of Odisha’s Sundargarh district, police said.