Self-styled healers beat 'possessed' Karnataka woman to death during 'exorcism'
What's the story
A 55-year-old woman, Geetamma, was allegedly beaten to death during an exorcism ritual in Shivamogga district of Karnataka on Monday night. Her son Sanjay and self-styled healers—Asha and her husband, Santosh—have been arrested in connection with the incident. The tragedy unfolded when Sanjay took his mother to Asha, who claimed she could drive away an evil spirit believed to be possessing Geetamma.
Ritual abuse
Video of the incident surfaces
A video of the incident has emerged, showing Geetamma in a semi-conscious state with disheveled hair sitting on the floor. In the video, Asha can be seen performing the ritual by rolling a lemon around Geetamma's head, making her smell it, and then hitting her with it. She then splits the lemon and continues to hit and rub both halves on Geetamma's head.
Fatal beating
The assault continued for hours
The video then shows Asha pulling Geetamma by her hair and slapping her multiple times. After this, she picks up a stick and continues to beat the elderly woman, who tries to defend herself but is unsuccessful. The assault reportedly continued from around 9:30pm until 1:00am after which Geetamma succumbed to her injuries.
Legal action
Similar incident in Bihar
After the incident, Sanjay, Asha, and Santosh were arrested and charged with murder. The case has been registered at a local police station in Shivamogga district. This incident comes on the heels of another tragic event in Bihar's Purnia district last week where five family members were killed by a mob on suspicion of practicing witchcraft.