In a shocking incident that highlights the dark reality of ritual sacrifice in India, five individuals have been arrested for the tragic killing of a seven-year-old boy in what police describe as an alleged ritual sacrifice aimed at securing good fortune for a public school. This grim event occurred in Hathras, a city located near the iconic Taj Mahal, where the victim was discovered dead in his hostel bed.
Authorities reported that instead of notifying the police, the school director, Dinesh Baghel, attempted to conceal the boy’s body by hiding it in the trunk of his car. According to police officer Himanshu Mathur, the child was killed prior to a black magic ceremony orchestrated by Baghel’s father. “The boy was meant to be taken to an altar as part of a ritual, but he was killed before the ceremony could be completed,” Mathur stated.
The arrests included Baghel, his father, and three other teachers at the school, although further details about the cause of death remain undisclosed. Local media has indicated that the victim’s body is currently undergoing a post-mortem examination to uncover the specifics of this heinous crime.
This incident underscores a disturbing trend in India, as the National Crime Records Bureau recorded 103 cases of human sacrifice between 2014 and 2021. Ritual killings, often carried out to appease deities, are more prevalent in tribal and remote regions of the country, where beliefs in witchcraft and the occult remain deeply entrenched.
In a similar vein, last year, police apprehended five men in connection with the 2019 murder of a 64-year-old woman, who was brutally killed and decapitated with a machete after a visit to a temple in India’s remote northeast. Authorities revealed that the alleged ringleader was conducting a religious right to commemorate the anniversary of his brother’s death.
As these horrific events unfold, they raise significant concerns about the ongoing practice of ritual sacrifice in India and its implications for society at large.
