LUCKNOW: An incident reflecting how superstitions are still ruling the psyche of people in rural areas came to the fore when 15 girl students at a state government-run school in the Mahua village in Mahoba district were handed over to a 'Tantrik' (sorcerer) for treatment as they had taken ill after a session of mid-day meal in the school.
Meanwhile, the district authorities ordered a probe into the incident, said the police sources.
The incident took place on Monday when the school authorities instead of taking the students to a hospital, called in a ‘Tantrik' and asked him to dispossess them of the 'bad spirits' that might have possessed the girls leading to the deterioration in their condition. The sorcerer continued to practice exorcism on the girls for two hours.
A video purportedly showing the incident also went viral on social media after which the district administration and police authorities swung into action and reached the school. The team of senior officials chased the 'Tantrik' out of the school and rushed the girl students to the local community health centre for treatment.
According to Kulpahar Sub-divisional magistrate (SDM) Arun Dikshit, not only the incident of the exorcist treating the girls was being probed but the samples of the food prepared in the mid-day meal were also collected and given to the food inspector for investigation.
“Apparently, the girls fell ill due to extreme cold weather conditions. The probe is on to ascertain the facts and on whose advice the 'Tantrik' was summoned,” said Dixit.
Sharing other details, Dixit said that the girl students who got ill were in the 9-13 years of age group. “Some students told us that a few children had also taken ill 2-3 days ago, but recovered after some time,” he added.
The doctors at the CHC said that the girls fainted in panic and all were very scared. “However, their condition is returning to normalcy,” they added. Dr Mahur, posted at the CHC claimed that all the girls brought to the hospital did not have the same symptoms.
While some of them were suffering from stomach ache, others were complaining of a headache and giddiness. “In fact, all the unwell students did not eat the mid-day meal. Only a few had eaten,” said the doctor adding that the rest of them were scared of seeing the way the 'Tantrik' was treating them.
On the other, the local police sources claimed that the school staff called the 'Tantrik' as the villagers believed that the school building was inhabited by ghosts. They further said that a girl child on Monday had first seen a woman dressed in white and she disappeared after a while.