Assam Court Hands Life Terms to Six Men for 1995 Witchcraft Killing

A court in Assam has sentenced six men to life imprisonment for the murder of an 80-year-old woman who was killed on suspicion of practising witchcraft nearly three decades ago.

The Rangia Additional Sessions and District Judge's Court delivered the verdict on Wednesday, convicting the six accused in the death of Maria Boro.

According to the prosecution, Boro was attacked in Bordangerikuchi village, which falls under the Baihata Chariali police station area of Kamrup district. She had been accused of witchcraft before the assault, and her body was subsequently set on fire.

The six men convicted are Soneswar Boro, Jungle Boro, Suraj Boro, Kandura Boro, Hareshwar Boro and Dhanla Boro. All of them belong to the same locality.

The court handed down life imprisonment under Sections 147, 148, 149, 302, 448 and 201 of the Indian Penal Code, which cover charges of rioting, unlawful assembly, murder, house trespass and causing the disappearance of evidence.

The case had been pending for years since the killing in 1995, and Wednesday's ruling brought the long-running trial to a close more than three decades later.

The incident is among several in Assam in which allegations of witchcraft have led to violence against elderly and vulnerable people.