'Land dispute' behind Bihar witchcraft deaths

Sonu Oraon was dozing off after dinner around 10pm on Sunday when a cacophony of sharp voices outside the hut shook him awake.

- Aditya Nath Jha

A fellow villager, Ramdev Oraon, had dragged his sick nephew Sunil Oraon, and laid him on the courtyard outside. “You'rea witch. You ate my son Sumit; now will you eat my nephew too? 'm giving you half.an hour to fix him, or else I'll burn youalive,” Ramdev shouted — his ire directed at Sonu's grandmother, Kanto Devi.

Almost everyone in their village of Tetgama340 km northeast of Patna— knew that Ramdev's eight-year-old son had died roughly two weeks earlier. But Sonu hoped that the threats were just empty jibes froma bellicose man.

They were not. Half an hour later, Ramdev allegedly returned witha large group of armed men and women - the first information report names 23 people and adds that another 150-200 people were present - who proceeded toalleg-edly drag Babu Lal, 50, his mother Kanto Devi, 70, wife Sita Devi, 45, son Manjit Kumar, 25 and daughter-in-law-Rania Devi, 22, out of the house and burn them to death.