{
  "type": "article",
  "title": "Family Deaths Fuel Superstition as Man Kills Sister-in-law Over Witchcraft Accusation in Chhattisgarh",
  "summary": "In Chhattisgarh's Jashpur district, a man blamed a series of deaths in his family on his widowed sister-in-law, branded her a witch and beat her to death with a stick.",
  "content": "In Dungajor village, under the Pathalgaon police station limits of Chhattisgarh's Jashpur district, a 35-year-old widow was clubbed to death by her own brother-in-law after he accused her of practising witchcraft. The victim, identified as Navina Rathiya, had been living alone since her husband's death and was attacked on a Monday morning while going about her usual household chores in the courtyard of her home.\n\nA Morning That Turned Violent\nPolice said Navina Rathiya was alone in the courtyard, busy with everyday domestic work, when her brother-in-law Sukhsingh Rathiya arrived at the house in a drunken state. Within moments the two were locked in a bitter argument over an old grievance, and the dispute quickly turned murderous. Investigators later established that Sukhsingh Rathiya had long believed his sister-in-law practised black magic, and it was this suspicion that triggered the confrontation that morning.\n\nGrief, Illness and a Dangerous Belief\nAccording to the police probe, Sukhsingh Rathiya's own family had suffered a series of losses over the past several years. His elderly mother, his own brother and an infant grandchild had all died at different times, apparently from serious illness or other causes. Rather than accepting these deaths as a matter of illness or trusting medical explanations, Sukhsingh Rathiya convinced himself that his brother's widow, Navina Rathiya, was responsible. He came to believe she was a tonhi, a witch practising sorcery, and that her black magic had claimed the lives of his relatives one after another.\n\nMonths of Public Humiliation\nThis belief did not stay confined to the family. Officers investigating the case said Sukhsingh Rathiya had made a habit of drinking day and night, and would routinely brand his younger sister-in-law a witch in front of the entire village. He subjected her to constant mental harassment, hurled abuse at her and had beaten her on earlier occasions too, all while accusing her publicly of casting spells on his family. Despite the repeated humiliation in front of fellow villagers, Navina had no one at home to stand by her.\n\nThe Fatal Attack\nOn the Monday in question, Sukhsingh Rathiya turned up at the house drunk once again, and the same old accusation sparked another furious argument between the two. His anger spiralled out of control within moments. Without a second thought, he picked up a heavy wooden stick lying in a corner of the house and began raining blows on the defenceless Navina Rathiya's head and body. He continued the assault with brutal ferocity until she stopped breathing. By the time neighbours and other villagers, alerted by her screams, rushed to the spot, Sukhsingh Rathiya had already fled after committing the killing.\n\nA Superstition That Refuses to Die\nThe case is a stark reminder that even as science and technology advance and the world talks of searching for life on the Moon and Mars, deep pockets of rural India remain trapped in a lethal web of superstitions such as witch-hunting, tonhi accusations, black magic and faith healing. Families struck by repeated illness or death often look for someone to blame rather than a medical cause, and in many such cases it is a vulnerable woman, frequently a widow with no one to protect her, who ends up paying with her life. Navina Rathiya's death has become the latest victim of this deep-rooted social evil.\n\nWhat this means for you\nThis case highlights the real risks superstition-driven violence still poses in parts of rural India.\n\n• Across India: It shows how witch-hunting and tonhi accusations continue to endanger women, especially widows, in rural pockets of several states.\n• In Jashpur, Chhattisgarh: Following this killing, police and local administration in and around Dungajor village may face pressure to step up awareness drives against such superstitions.\n\nQuestions & Answers\n\n1. Where did this incident take place?\nIt happened in Dungajor village, under the Pathalgaon police station area of Chhattisgarh's Jashpur district.\n\n2. Who was the victim?\nThe victim was 35-year-old Navina Rathiya, a widow who had been living alone since her husband's death.\n\n3. Who is accused of the murder?\nThe accused is her own brother-in-law, Sukhsingh Rathiya, who was drunk at the time of the attack.\n\n4. Why did he kill her?\nHe blamed Navina for several deaths in his family, believing she was a witch practising black magic.\n\n5. How did the attack happen?\nDuring an argument, the accused picked up a wooden stick and repeatedly struck her head and body until she died.\n\n6. What happened to the accused after the killing?\nSukhsingh Rathiya fled the scene immediately after committing the murder.",
  "url": "https://trendkia.com/en/chhattisgarh/parivara-men-hui-mauton-ko-diya-andhavishvasa-ka-rnga-bhabhi-ko-dayana-bata-jetha-ne-ki-hatya-7807",
  "category": "Chhattisgarh",
  "publishedAt": "2026-07-15",
  "tags": [
    "Chhattisgarh murder",
    "Jashpur superstition",
    "witch hunting case",
    "tonhi harassment",
    "Pathalgaon incident",
    "superstition crime"
  ],
  "language": "en",
  "site": "TrendKia"
}