Ending the Practice of ‘Witch-Hunting’ in Assam: An Interview with Archana Bhattacharjee about Birubala Rabha’s Work

By Joyce Yarrow
‘Witch-hunting’ in Assam involves branding a woman as a witch or daini, mostly based on the declaration of an Ojha or Bez (quack doctor).This usually happens when villagers approach the village Ojha about someone who has a chronic ailment and the Ojah identifies a woman as the source of the sickness and she is branded as a daini or witch.