Severe caning by exorcist leads to death of 12-year-old girl in Assam

Mangalore Today News Network

Guwahati, June 05, 2017: A 12-year-old girl died in Assam on Sunday after she was allegedly lashed repeatedly with a cane by an exorcist to rid her of so-called evil spirits.

The victim, Asmana Begum of Ratanpur in Karimganj district, was suffering from fever for the past few days. But instead of taking her to a hospital, her father took her to Mohammad Ali, a local exorcist.

According to reports, the accused told Asmana’s father that she had been possessed by evil spirits and needed to be treated to rid her of them.

As part of the ‘treatment’, Mohammad allegedly flogged the victim, a student of Class 8, severely with a cane all over her body.

Asmana succumbed to her injuries on Sunday.

The police registered a case of murder based on a complaint by the girl’s father and have arrested the accused.

While reports in local dailies mention caning to be the primary cause of Asmana’s death, police are yet to substantiate it.

“We are waiting for the post-mortem report to ascertain the cause of death,” Superintendant of Police Gaurav Upadhyay informed HT, adding the accused ‘mishandled’ the victim.

Last November, a 4-year-old girl was sacrificed to propitiate god by a witch doctor in Charaideo district of eastern Assam, allegedly to recover the lost mobile phone of one of his clients.

Courtesy: Hindustantimes