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Video Editor: Rahul Sanpui
“First they labelled my mother a 'witch', and then my sister a 'witch', and then they killed them both,” 57-year-old Sibi Khalkho recounted details of the horrific night in 2015.
Sibi is a resident of Kanjiya Maraitoli village situated merely 30 kilometres away from Ranchi, the state capital of Jharkhand, where on the night of 8 August 2015, five women, Jasinta, Madani, Titri, Rakiya, and Eitwariya, accused of witchcraft, were brutally hacked to death by a mob of relatives and neighbours.
In search of the 'Witches’ of Jharkhand, The Quint reached Kanjiya Maraitoli village to try and understand what happened that night: how five women from the same village became witches in the eyes of their village, why they were beaten by their relatives and neighbours, their clothes torn, and their heads crushed with stones.
Around 300 metres from Sibi’s home lives Usha Khalkho, daughter-in-law of Madani Khalkho, who was among the group of five women hacked to death on the fateful night.
Around 150 people gathered outside their homes, creating an atmosphere of terror. The mob descended upon their residence at midnight, breaking down the door, dragging Madani Khalkho outside, and subjecting her to a fatal assault.
Madani Khalkho’s son Karamdeo Khalkho recounted:
According to Karamdeo Khalkho, a boy named Bipin Khalkho had fallen ill weeks before the incident, and after his death, whispers of witchcraft circulated. The blame for the boy's demise was unjustly placed on these five women.
An inebriated mob of men and women harassed, thrashed, and ultimately killed Jasinta, Kalki (Rakiya), Madani, Etwariya, and Titri.
“She had good relations with everyone. Everyone respected her, some less some more but we never thought that the villagers would kill her, that too, for witchcraft. She did not know of it," Karmadeo said.
The Quint visited the homes of Rakiya and Titri, where Johan Oraon, son of Rakiya and brother of Titri, expressed his bewilderment at the sudden turn of events.
"We were sleeping. There was a sudden commotion – and we heard a lot of noise. The villagers then broke the doors and dragged my mother out first. They then went for my sister. They accused both of them of witchcraft and killed them," Sibi Khalkho, daughter of Madani Khalkho, recalled.
The killings may not have been solely fueled by superstition; the women were vocal against alcohol consumption in the village, and there's more than just superstition behind it, Manju Khalkho, a villager, said.
"Jasinta was my aunt. Both Jasinta and Madani spoke freely. They would confront those who drank alcohol openly, and probably, that wasn't appreciated by a lot of men."
Manju Khalkho a young aspirant who wants to become a teacher, hesitantly told The Quint:
Ajay Jaiswal, Convener of ASHA NGO, highlighting the plight of women in Jharkhand, said: "Women who speak openly in their male-dominated society are targeted in the name of witchcraft."
After the killings, Jharkhand Police filed an FIR against 150 individuals, but they were later released on bail.
Johan Oraon, the son of Rakiya, recounted that when the police came to arrest the accused but they 'danced their way out' as if they had done ‘something remarkable.'
Karamdeo Khalkho on the other hand said: "I just don't fall asleep whenever I remember my mother. It all comes back... I get tense, and I can't sleep."
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