Witches in India Beaten, Forced to Eat Excrement

In the remote, Indian village of Pattharghatia, some believe that certain clerics are possessed of the Holy Spirit which grants them the knowledge as to whom amongst them is a witch. Too often, those accused are widows, targeted for their land.

This is believed to be the matter in a case involving five widowed, Muslim women, who were stripped naked and paraded about on a playground in front of hundreds of eyewitnesses - not one of whom lifted a hand to end the women's suffering. A video shows an angry mob viciously striking the accused "witches" before they are stripped, paraded about, and forced to eat human excrement.

When the video came to the attention of the larger population, India was outraged. A police force swept into the tiny village, arresting four and taking the abused women into protective custody. Police filed grievances against 11 people, including six women.

Hundreds of women accused of being witches are killed in India each year.

© C Harris Lynn, 2009