BIHAR, INDIA — In a chilling act of mob violence, five members of a single family were beaten to death and their bodies dumped in a pond in Bihar, India, after villagers accused them of practising witchcraft, local police reported on Tuesday.
The victims — including three women, one of them a 75-year-old elderly woman — were allegedly targeted following the death of a local boy. The boy’s father, who is among those arrested, believed one of the family members had caused his son’s death through supernatural means.
Following the killings, the attackers reportedly loaded the bodies onto a tractor and dumped them into a nearby pond, police said in an official statement. The gruesome incident occurred in a remote village, with all parties — both victims and suspects — belonging to the Oraon tribal community, a marginalized group native to the region.
Police have arrested three individuals who have confessed to their involvement in the killings. A manhunt is ongoing for others allegedly involved.
Despite ongoing public awareness campaigns and legal measures to combat superstitious violence, belief in witchcraft remains widespread in India’s rural and tribal regions. Bihar, one of India’s poorest states with a population of over 130 million, has seen several such incidents in recent years.
While legislation exists in some Indian states to criminalize witchcraft-related accusations and violence, enforcement remains inconsistent. Women are disproportionately affected, often branded as witches and subjected to public humiliation, violence, or murder.
This case stands out for its brutality and the number of victims, highlighting how deep-rooted superstitions and personal vendettas continue to fuel such atrocities.
According to data from the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), more than 1,500 people — most of them women — were killed in India between 2010 and 2021 on suspicion of witchcraft. Experts note that such allegations are often used to justify violence, settle disputes, or grab land and property.
Police say investigations are ongoing, and further arrests are expected as they work to bring all perpetrators to justice.
