TURA: Police in Tikrikilla have made a breakthrough into last week’s gruesome beheading and murder of a woman with the arrest of two villagers who are believed to be the prime conspirators of the killing. Both the arrested men are brothers.
The investigation has also uncovered the deep impact of superstition plaguing the inhabitants of the village who accused the victim of practicising sorcery and murdered her in cold blood.
“We have arrested two men, both brothers, for their involvement in the crime. There are several others who are absconding,” revealed West Garo Hills Superintendent of Police MGR Kumar.
According to the police, the recent death of a young woman in the village of Kalchengdap, 5 kms from Tikrikilla, was blamed on the 49-year-old woman, Jenolish M Marak, by some of the villagers. They accused her of practising withcraft.
Fearing for her life, Jenolish Marak had reportedly approached the village Nokma to inform him about the threats being made against her. Why the nokma failed to settle the matter or report it to the police remains a mystery and makes him an accused to the murder.
On the night of October 16 a group of villagers raided Jenolish Marak’s home, detained her daughter and son-in-law inside the house, dragged her out to the compound and hacked her to death.
The two arrested men, Grenal N Sangma and Sengsrang N Sangma, are the brothers of the young woman whose death was blamed on the murdered victim.
About half a dozen others who took part in the murder are currently on the run.
According to police sources, villagers were reluctant to narrate the true picture of the crime until police began investigation leading to the unravelling of a deep rooted conspiracy of murder over beliefs in superstition.
Garo Hills has been unable to shake off this social problem of superstition. Cases of murder in villages over allegations of withcraft have been plaguing the region for years.
One of the most chilling murders took place barely five years ago at Mrigre village under Rongram block, near Tura, in which an entire village tried to cover up the cold blooded killing of a school teacher and his elderly parents merely on beliefs about sorcery. Several villagers were arrested and the case continues to this day.
Already, in separate incidents in Khasi Hills two persons have lost their lives on suspicion of practicing witchcraft.
Both the incidents have evoked wide revulsion in the community.
The macabre incident of burying a nonagenarian alive in a remote village in West Khasi Hills recently over suspicion of practice of witchcraft has caused a shock wave across the state and earlier this year, a group of youths who were out in a picnic were beaten to a pulp by the villagers at Syntung.
One in his mid twenties succumbed to his injuries and all of this on mere suspicion of witchcraft.