Odisha woman stripped, assaulted in public by villagers on witchcraft suspicion: Police
The incident took place on September 25, but the woman lodged a complaint on Wednesday, following which police registered a case against six people, including two women
A woman was allegedly stripped and brutally assaulted in public by villagers of Banitia in Odisha’s Bhadrak district on suspicion of practising witchcraft, police said on Thursday.
The woman alleged that a group of villagers barged into her house when her husband and son were not at home.
The incident took place on September 25, but the woman lodged a complaint on Wednesday, following which police registered a case against six people, including two women.
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“Six people, including two women, have been named in the case. No one has been arrested so far. We are searching for those named in the complaint,” Bhadrak Rural police station inspector-in-charge Subrat Das said.
The woman alleged that a group of villagers barged into her house when her husband and son were not at home.
“They beat me on suspicion of witchcraft. I told them I had done nothing, but they continued beating me on the village street. I ran home to save my life, but they entered the house and assaulted me again. Then they dragged me onto the village street, where I was stripped and beaten. They beat me like an animal,” the woman said.
She alleged that the attackers also looted articles from her house in Banitia village.
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The woman was being taken to hospital in an auto-rickshaw with the help of the local sarpanch when some villagers stopped the vehicle, dragged her out and assaulted her again. Police later reached the village, rescued her and admitted her to the Bhadrak District Headquarters Hospital.
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The woman was being taken to hospital in an auto-rickshaw with the help of the local sarpanch when some villagers stopped the vehicle, dragged her out and assaulted her again. Police later reached the village, rescued her and admitted her to the Bhadrak District Headquarters Hospital.
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Three days ago, a 41-year-old man from Gajapati district was allegedly beaten to death by villagers and his body burnt after being taken from his home over suspicion that he practised witchcraft.
The incident comes amid the Odisha government’s move to frame the State Policy for Witch-Hunting (Prevention, Protection and Prosecution), 2026.
The proposed policy seeks stronger preventive measures, immediate rescue of victims and faster legal proceedings in witch-hunting cases, particularly in rural and tribal areas.
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It also envisages special courts and trained prosecutors for time-bound trials, besides round-the-clock response mechanisms, systematic tracking of cases and action against officials who fail to register complaints or properly investigate such incidents.
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.
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