A court in Odisha’s Gajapati district has sentenced 12 men to life imprisonment for the 2021 murder of a father and his son, who were allegedly targeted after villagers accused them of practising witchcraft.
Additional Sessions Judge Hara Prasad Pattanaik convicted the men and described the killings as deliberate and premeditated. The court noted that the accused had allegedly acted on the belief that the victims were involved in witchcraft.
The victims, Luka Dalabehera and his son Anuka Dalabehera, were killed in Muthaguda village in June 2021.
According to the prosecution, on June 12, 2021, the accused gathered near the residence of the main accused, Josua Gamango. Luka was allegedly blamed for causing the deaths of other villagers through sorcery. A mob then reportedly dragged Luka and his son to an agricultural field on the outskirts of the village.
The two were allegedly attacked with stones and bamboo sticks and beaten to death.
During the trial, the prosecution examined 23 witnesses and presented documentary and material evidence before the court. After considering the evidence, the court sentenced all 12 convicts to life imprisonment.
The case has also drawn attention to the wider issue of witch-hunting in rural and tribal areas. The Odisha government is currently preparing the Odisha State Policy for Witch-Hunting (Prevention, Protection and Prosecution), 2026.
The proposed policy aims to strengthen measures to prevent witch-hunting, provide immediate assistance and protection to victims, and speed up legal proceedings in such cases.
The government is also considering the establishment of special courts and the deployment of trained prosecutors to handle witch-hunting cases and ensure faster trials.
The proposed framework includes round-the-clock response mechanisms and systematic tracking of cases. It also envisages action against officials who fail to register complaints or do not properly investigate allegations of witch-hunting.
The Gajapati court's judgment comes against this backdrop, highlighting the legal consequences of violence arising from accusations of witchcraft. The sentencing follows a trial in which investigators and prosecutors presented evidence linking the 12 convicts to the killings.
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