In Odisha, father-son duo beaten to death over suspicions of practising witchcraft

The father-son duo was called to a nearby forest where the villagers held a meeting before thrashing them to death. A child had died in the village a month ago and villagers suspected that the father-son duo’s witchcraft led to his death.

Published on: Jun 13, 2021, 23:30:37 IST

By Debabrata Mohanty

Prefer HTon Google

Share via

Copy link

A 55-year-old man and his 22-year-old son were thrashed to death by villagers who suspected them of practising witchcraft in the tribal-dominated Gajapati district of Odisha. The incident occurred on Saturday night.

According to police officials in Gajapti, Luka Dalabehera (55) and his son Anak Dalabehera (22) of Muthaguda village under the jurisdiction of Adaba police station were called out from their home on Saturday evening by a few villagers. “The father-son duo was called to a nearby forest where the villagers held a meeting before thrashing them to death. A child had died in the village a month ago and villagers suspected that the father-son duo’s witchcraft led to his death,” said sub-divisional police officer of R Udaygiri, Dilip Kumar Nayak.

Luka died in the forest, while a badly injured Anak managed to escape from the spot and returned home. However, he too succumbed to his injuries at home. The local sarpanch reported the incident to the Adaba police. “My father and brother were killed on baseless suspicions of sorcery. The police should arrest the culprits immediately and punish them,” said Luka’s daughter Ludhia.

Police said some people in the village have been detained over their alleged involvement in the murder.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Debabrata Mohanty
Debabrata Mohanty is a senior assistant editor of Hindustan Times who works as state correspondent from Odisha covering the state's politics, governance, public policy, natural disasters, environment and its society for close to three decades. With his long years of reporting from the state capital of Bhubaneswar, Mohanty has been known as one of the most experienced and credible journalists covering Odisha for the national English dailies. His reporting combines on-ground detail with deep institutional knowledge detailing the state's changing politics, governance issues, administrative reforms and the functioning of its public institutions. He has regularly reported on issues ranging from legislative developments and public policy implementation. Politics is his core areas of expertise as he closely tracks Odisha's political landscape, including the rise and transformation of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Biju Janata Dal (BJD), the two principal political parties in Odisha. His long association with the state's political establishment enables him to write on contemporary developments in a larger political context. Mohanty takes a deep interest in writing human interest stories, environmental issues and documenting the impact of cyclones, floods, heatwaves, and other climate-related events in one of the most disaster-prone states. His coverage extends to public health, governance reforms and stories on accountability of government institutions. Before joining Hindustan Times, Mohanty worked with The Indian Express, Mail Today, and The Telegraph, where he covered at least six general elections and as many assembly elections. In 2007, he was selected for the prestigious Chevening Young Indian Print Journalist Programme at the University of Lincoln, United Kingdom, where he received advanced training in print journalism. In 2009 he won the Press Institute of India-International Committee of Red Cross award on conflict reporting for his on-ground reportage of 2008 Kandhamal riots.Read More

Get the latest India News, breaking headlines and real-time updates from across the country. Stay informed about politics, government policies, crime, weather and major national developments.