RANCHI: A village panchayat in Jharkhand's Jamshedpur has passed a resolution for not hearing any case related to witch-hunting.
According to the Gram Pradhan of Sarjamda village under Jamshedpur Block of Jamshedpur, the decision has been taken in the wake of the growing incidents of killing women and elders after branding them as witches during Panchayat meetings.
Not only that, the Gram Panchayat has also amended the rules of the traditional self-governance system, under which, if anyone approaches the Gram Sabha with a complaint accusing a woman or anybody of practicing black magic, his or her complaint will not be entertained.
As per the amended constitution, there is no such thing as a witch or witchcraft.
Gram Pradhan Suresh Hansda, also known as Manjhi Baba, informed that if someone comes to the Gram Sabha with an application accusing someone of being a witch, it is rejected outrightly and the person referred for counselling, during which, they are told that it is nothing but superstition.
“Not a single case of witchcraft has recorded in the region after the resolution was taken by the Gram Sabha a few years back, which clearly indicates that the purpose has been solved,” said Hansda.
Earlier, our forefathers were illiterate, who used to believe in such superstitions, but now after becoming literate, there should not be any space for such thing in society, he added.
“The resolution not taken orally, but in writing formally on the Panchayat register,” said Hansda.
Block Development Officer (BDO) Malay Kumar also lauded the initiative taken by Gram Panchayat, calling it a welcome step.
“As most of the witch-hunting cases are targeted towards the women and elderly, it is really a welcome step, which will further help in checking such incidents,” said the Block Development Officer. Other Panchayats should also follow the suit as it has effectively worked in this particular Panchayat, he added.
Civil Society Organisations also called it a landmark decision.
“Such initiative will further inspire other Panchayats to take similar decision as more than 2000 women have been killed the name of practicing black magic across Jharkhand since the state came into being in the year 2000,” said Secretary of Association for Social and Humar Awareness (ASHA) Ajay Jaiswal.
Padma Shri recipient and social worker, known for raising her voice against the witch-hunting, Chhutni Mahato, also believes that the incidents of murder on the pretext of being a witch could only be stopped when the society becomes aware.
“Panchayats have an important role to play to check this menace as the decisions of Panchayats are paramount in tribal villages. If initiatives are being taken against such superstitions in tribal panchayats, then it will yield positive results,” said Chhutni Mahto.
Notably, there are a lot of instances in Jharkhand where people were killed following a decision taken by the Panchayat, branding them as witches.
Tribal-dominated Jharkhand, Odisha, Chhattisgarh and Telangana are the worst affected states. Hundreds of women have been persecuted, tortured and killed in the garb of witchcraft in past few decades in these four states.