In Bihar, 5 family members hacked to death, burnt on suspicion of witchcraft

Mangalore Today News Network

Purnea, July 8, 2025: Five members of a tribal family, including three women, were allegedly hacked to death and their bodies burnt on suspicion of practising witchcraft in Purnea district of Bihar, police said on Monday, adding that two people have been detained for questioning in connection with the incident.

The incident took place late on Sunday night at Tetma village, under the Muffasil police station area, and the police managed to recover the partially burnt bodies of the victims on Monday evening, officers said.

“Prima facie the incident appears to have been committed in the dispute over witchcraft practising which is still rampant among the community [members],” the office of Purnea superintendent of police (SP) said in a statement. Tetma is predominantly a tribal-dominated village.

The deceased were identified as Babu Lal Oraon (50), his mother Kanto Devi (70), wife Sita Devi (45), son Manjit Kumar (25) and daughter-in-law Rani Devi (22), police said.

Sita Devi’s son Sonu (16), the sole survivor from the family, informed the police that a mob of around 50 people stormed into their house at 10 pm on Sunday, accusing his mother of witchcraft. The boy told the police that the mob first beat his mother with bamboo sticks, calling her a witch. Then they attacked the rest of his family, who came to rescue her, and hacked all of them to death in front of him, a police officer said, quoting the 16-year-old.

The assailants allegedly carried the bodies of the victims around 100-150 metres away from their house and set them ablaze, police said, adding they recovered the partially charred remains of the victims on Monday evening.

“With the help of forensic experts and dog squad team, police have recovered the bodies… Police have detained two persons and further investigation is underway,” the statement said

One of the suspects detained by the police allegedly confessed that the villagers burnt the bodies by pouring diesel, police said. “The bodies are said to have been burnt after hacking them to death,” the statement said.

SP Sweety Sahrawat, along with other senior police officers, reached the village to take stock of the situation. “No one in the village is cooperating with the police and police detained two people on the basis of the clues received from the boy,” the statement said.

Sub-divisional police officer (SDPO) Pankaj Sharma said the incident took place two days after a boy in the village had died while another was taken ill. The villagers suspected the death and illness was caused by the victim’s family. “On Sunday night, the villagers committed the crime on the suspicion of witchcraft,” Sharma said.

The SDPO said that efforts were underway to send the bodies for post-mortem examination. “We will file a case soon,” he added.

Purnia Lok Sabha MP Pappu Yadav called the “massacre” of five members of a tribal family “shameful”.

“This is a great stain on the head of our Purnia, I am ashamed...The world has reached Mars and our people are committing massacres in the name of witches,” the Independent MP said in a post in Hindi on X.

Prof NK Srivasatava, who has done research on tribal communities living in Seemanchal and Kosi regions of Bihar, told HT: “The community is still in the grip of superstition and witchcraft practising is very common among them. Despite social awareness launched in their villages, the practice is still going on.”