JAMSHEDPUR: A 65-year-old woman was axed to death in a village near Chaibasa in West Singhbhum district on Saturday evening on suspicion of being a witch, police said.
The deceased has been identified as Jano Hessa (65), a native of Barkela village on the outskirts of Chaibasa. The assailant was identified as Madhusudhan Boipai, the deceased’s nephew.
Boipai allegedly thrashed Hessa with a stick until she lost her consciousness. Then he hacked Hessa to death with an axe.
Dashrath Mahto, the officer in-charge of Sadar police station, said Boipai was arrested. The murder weapon was also seized from his possession.
“Boipai was not keeping well for a few months and suspected Hessa of being responsible for it. He came to Hessa’s home drunk on Saturday evening and started hitting her with a stick. As she fell unconscious owing to the beating, Boipai hacked her to death,” Mahto said.
“A teenaged grandchild of the deceased witnessed the killing and informed the police. The assailant had surrendered himself by then to the village dacua (an accomplice of Pahans, the traditional tribal village heads). The police then arrested Boipai and sent Hessa’s body for autopsy,” Mahto added.
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