Archive · 10 Sep 2026
Assam Court Gives Six Men Life Terms for Witchcraft Killing
In 1995, an 80-year-old woman named Maria Boro was killed in Assam.
People had accused her of witchcraft.
Prosecutors said she was attacked and her body was later burnt.
Six men from the same area were found guilty.
A court in Rangia sentenced each man to life in prison.
The court used several sections of India’s criminal law.
The case had remained unresolved for many years.
The verdict ended the trial more than three decades after the killing.
An Assam court sentenced six men to life imprisonment for killing 80-year-old Maria Boro in 1995.
The killing occurred in Bordangerikuchi village in Kamrup district, according to the prosecution.
Prosecutors said Boro was accused of practising witchcraft and was attacked before her body was burnt.
The convicts are Soneswar Boro, Jungle Boro, Suraj Boro, Kandura Boro, Hareshwar Boro and Dhanla Boro.
The Rangia court convicted the men under several Indian Penal Code sections, ending a case pending for more than three decades.
- Who
- Six men—Soneswar Boro, Jungle Boro, Suraj Boro, Kandura Boro, Hareshwar Boro and Dhanla Boro—were convicted in the killing of Maria Boro.
- What
- The men received life imprisonment for killing an 80-year-old woman allegedly over suspicion of witchcraft.
- When
- The killing occurred in 1995; the court delivered its verdict on Wednesday, more than three decades later.
- Where
- Bordangerikuchi village in Assam’s Kamrup district, under Baihata Chariali police station; the sentence was delivered by the Rangia Additional Sessions and District Judge's Court.
- Why
- According to the prosecution, Maria Boro was attacked because she was allegedly accused of practising witchcraft.
- Victim
- Maria Boro, an 80-year-old woman
- Year of killing
- 1995
- Location
- Bordangerikuchi village, Kamrup district, Assam
- Convicts
- Six men from the same area
- Sentence
- Life imprisonment for each convict
- Court
- Rangia Additional Sessions and District Judge's Court
- Legal provisions
- Sections 147, 148, 149, 302, 448 and 201 of the Indian Penal Code