A 53-year-old woman was killed and her body buried in a forest in a suspected case of “witch-hunting” in Sonitpur district of Assam, officials said on April 25.
According to senior officials, the gruesome incident took place at Geruajuli village in the Rangapara police station area on April 24 night.
The woman, a widow, lived alone with her four children.
Around 11 pm, some persons barged into her house and killed her with bludgeons and sticks, Sonitpur Police said.
Then they took the body to a nearby forest, buried it and fled from the scene, officials said.
When the villagers came to know about the incident from the victim’s children on April 25 morning, they informed the police and began a search for her.
After hours of search, the police and villagers found the body about a kilometre away from the house, buried in the forest.
The body was sent for post-mortem, while the police launched a manhunt for the culprits.
The villagers suspected it to be a case of superstitious belief of “witch-hunting” as she was tortured earlier as well by some people who branded her a “witch”.
However, Sonitpur deputy superintendent of police Rasmi Rekha Sarma said there is no clue found as of now to suspect the murder as a case of “witch-hunting”.
