SHILLONG: A single mother and her nine-year-old daughter, who hailed from a village near the Indo-Bangladesh border in West Jaintia Hills, have been ostracized by the village dorbar for allegedly practising ‘witchcraft’.
The village dorbar of Sankhat village, which is 15 kilometers away from Muktapur village, on March 15 had decided to ostracize Ioris Khongjoh and her daughter.
This was announced by the village headman Hedrik Dhar and his secretary E Khongiong. The decision was taken on the basis of a complaint lodged by one B Syrti. Syrti is a resident of the same village.
Besides snapping water supply connection to her residence, the village dorbar even threatened to burn down the house of Khongjoh.
While taking to newsmen here on Saturday, Khongjoh said Syrti lodged the complaint following a dispute over a plot of land she had with him.
According to her, Syrti had recently illegal encroached her land.
She said, “I had also brought to notice of the village authority the issue, but since I had kept the land documents with my sister who is staying in Shillong, I could not produce them in the dorbar meeting”.
The duo had to leave the village. They are are presently staying with Khongjoh’s elder sister in Shillong.
When contacted, the SDO Amlarem JU Kharpuri said, “As of now, I have not received any complaint in this regard.”