Jharkhand ranks highest in these crimes against women (and in certain cases, also men and child victims) in which “witchcraft” is the only charge against the victims. Other states such as Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Assam and Bihar also report witch-hunting deaths, though under-reported. An analysis of NCRB data between 2010 and 2012 reveals that while there were 77 instances of death, only nine cases were registered in Jharkhand. The figures also don’t take into account other kinds of ‘vengeance’ exacted by a village, like forcing the victim to parade naked in the village square, to eat faeces, banishment and ostracisation; none of these acts of violence attract a police warrant.

In most cases, the reason is not the only superstition; almost invariably someone who would like to settle a land or financial dispute or with a personal vendetta can settle on witch-hunting as a solution, especially if the victim is from a lower caste. As one victim’s husband states, jealousy can be an important factor contributing to a lynching. While immediate family members usually do protect the victims, they do so at great danger to themselves. Currently, India faces a profound paradox – while on the one hand, the country has developed tremendously, adopting new technologies and modern lifestyles, age-old traditions and rituals still exist, lying open to interpretation and misuse according to the perpetrators’ whims and fancies.

The hope in the story is that while some people are attempting to hunt down “witches” and offer them nothing but pain and distress, others can step forward to stop this ‘tradition’ forevermore. In a country that looks to the future, how long can we allow such inhuman acts to continue?

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