Village Unrest: House Demolished Over Sorcery Allegations in Bhadrak

Tensions Rise in Rajpur Village

In Bhadrak, Rajpur village has been engulfed in tension following the demolition of a local man's house, who was accused of engaging in sorcery and black magic. Reports indicate that the individual had moved away from the main village nearly ten years ago, constructing a residence on agricultural land adjacent to the cremation ground. Over time, villagers began to notice unusual behavior in several women, which they believed improved only after visiting the man's home for rituals. Their suspicions grew as one woman would recover, only for another to exhibit strange behavior.

The situation escalated on Tuesday night when Harekrushna Jena, a local resident, reported seeing a naked woman exiting the accused's house and heading towards the cremation site. Alarmed, he called for a village meeting where the man and his family were summoned for questioning. During this assembly, the elder son of the accused allegedly threatened the village elders, claiming he would harm them with his father's assistance. This confrontation incited the villagers' anger, leading them to demolish the man's house the following morning and demand the closure of a temple located on the property.

A formal complaint was lodged at the Bhadrak Rural police station, signed by several villagers including Balaram Jena, Kartik Jena, Prashant Jena, Sunanda Jena, Bani Jena, Jayaram Jena, and Ashok Kumar Jena. Officer in Charge Dayanidhi Das confirmed that both the man and his son were taken into custody for questioning. Additional Superintendent of Police Arup Abhishek Behera stated that while a complaint regarding sorcery had been received, there was no report filed concerning the demolition of the house. An investigation is currently underway.