Body of woman branded as witch exhumed, 5 held

PURULIA: A 55-year-old widow was allegedly strangled with ropes and buried by a group of villagers in Chatni near the Ayodhya Hills of Purulia. On Friday, the decomposed body of victim Barani Hembram was exhumed by police inside a forest in the Ayodhya Hills area. Five villagers, including prime accused Porshi Laldeb Hembram, have been arrested. Laldeb allegedly branded the woman as a witch after his grandson died a fortnight ago.
Police acted on a complaint lodged by the victim's brother-in-law Srijal Hembram.The accused were produced in court on Saturday after which Laldeb was remanded in police custody for two days.
Purulia SP Rupesh Kumar said, "On the basis of a complaint, we have arrested five accused including Laldeb who has been taken into police custody for two days for further interrogation."
In Murshidabad's Behrampore, meanwhile, villagers in Ramnagar Raypara resisted police officers, including two DSPs, when they tried to bring a woman, whom the locals accused of practising witchcraft, back to her home in the village. Kalpana Malopaharia was forced to leave the village after residents held her responsible for five girls falling ill in the village. The police team had to take Kalpana back with them following villagers' resistance.