Witch craft: One killed; six suspects held

Tezpur, Sep 18 (UNI) In yet another case of witchcraft, one woman was murdered and five others of her family were injured in Assam's Sonitpur district late last night.

The family of one Sivcharan Basumatary of Chariduar Thekeraloga village, about 40 km from here, was attacked by a group of 20-25 people with sharp weapons on charges of practising black magic.

Six people of the same village were arrested by police.

Sivcharan's daughter-in-law Anima (25) was killed, while five others, including Sivcharan and three women of his family, were injured.

The injured were admitted to Kanaklata Civil Hospital at Tezpur. Villagers maintained that the family was held guilty for famine-like conditions and health problems in the area. '' Witch craft is a serious problem in several Assam districts, especially among the tribal communities, with instances of entire families being killed on such charges,'' they said.

The administration as well as police had been trying to stop the evil but to little effect.

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