RAIPUR: Three women, including a 17-year-old girl, were hacked to death by sharp-edged weapons in separate incidents during the last six days in rural areas of Chhattisgarh over suspicion of practicing witchcraft (Tohni).
17-year old Minakshi Markam is the youngest so far to have been killed after being branded as 'Tohni' in the state.
All three women were brutally assaulted and killed. Besides Minakshi at Dhakuni village in Maoist-affected Kanker district, 75-year-old Sanmet Kashyap at Sanbahli village in Mahasamund and another elderly woman Hidma Podiyami at Katekalyan in Dantewada were murdered last week, by their neighbours.
A couple of months ago, President Droupadi Murmu during her visit to Chhattisgarh Assembly praised the state for enacting laws intended for social welfare and development including the protection for women as seen in the Witch-Hunting Prevention Act of 2005.
Chhattisgarh Tonhi Pratadna Nivaran Adhiniyam 2005, aimed against witch-hunting of women and to prevent the atrocities faced by them on the name of Tohni, is punishable with imprisonment upto 3 years with fine.
"Tonhi" is believed to be any person who is suspected to harm any other person or persons or society by black magic, evil eye or by any other superstitious means.
“In all inhuman acts, there may be various reasons based on strong superstitious beliefs cited by the accused behind killing the women. They are driven by irrational credence, remaining ignorant about the reasonable solutions to the problems and that led to ridiculous misgivings. The women labelled as tohni get ruthlessly abused by those suspecting them of practicing witchcraft”, said Dr Dinesh Mishra, 59, an ophthalmologist, who also run a voluntary organisation ‘Andhshraddha Nirmoolan Samiti' to campaign against the social evils and educate the people for over two decades.
The stringent Tonhi Act to a large extent curbed the menace, but the prevailing illiteracy and social factor led to a social boycott from the community, a police officer stated.
Dr Mishra suggested the government undertake a campaign to eradicate superstition based on tohni and infuse scientific temperament.