4-yr-old girl killed in ritual to ‘cure’ illness, say Assam police

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Police in Assam have arrested two people for allegedly killing a four-year-old girl as part of a ritual on Sunday night at Sonari in Charaideo district of the state. Among the two accused is the girl’s father and a self-proclaimed godman, police said on Wednesday.

The two allegedly strangled the girl to death and threw her body in the Singlo river to “cure” some unknown ailment that the godman, identified as Bogadhar Munda, dreamt he was suffering from, according to police.

“Both accused have confessed their involvement in the murder. Preliminary investigation reveals that Bogadhar claimed to have dreamt that he had some illness, which could be cured only with the sacrifice of a child. He disclosed this to the victim’s father who decided to help him by offering his own child for the sacrificial ritual,” said Sudhakar Singh, superintendent of police, Charaideo district.

The victim’s father Anta Munda (54) and Bogadhar, also in his 50s, are workers in the Safrai tea garden in the area.

Both are believed to be very close to each other, and the victim’s

GUWAHATI:

Source: ISRO father used to work as a part-time help in the Bogadhar’s house.

Police said they were first informed about the incident on Monday by the girl’s sister.

“We were informed on Monday by the victim’s eldest sister -- who is married and lives separately -- that the four-year-old girl, who was sleeping with two other siblings and their grandmother, was abducted by some unknown persons,” Singh said.

A search operation was launched and on Tuesday the victim’s body was found in a nearby river. The police team also found the child’s clothes and some other items associated with religious rituals from the bank of the river.

“The recovery of the body and other items led us to suspect that it could be a case of witchcraft or human sacrifice. Our teams questioned several people, and Anta and Bogadhar were arrested on Wednesday for their involvement in the child’s murder,” Singh said on Wednesday..

The body of the child, which bore strangulation marks, has been sent for a post mortem and its report is awaited. Further investigation is underway and more people could be arrested, said police, adding that the murder weapon is yet to be traced.