Little boy’s finger chopped off to ‘appease deity’ under superstitious beliefs in Odisha’s Koraput

A few miscreants allegedly chopped off the finger of a little boy to appease their deity. The bone-chilling incident which has been reported from Lanjiput village under Nandapur block in Koraput has sent shockwaves across the State.

The matter came to the fore after the boy was found in an unconscious state in a forest with his finger chopped off. Family members rescued him in a critical condition and rushed him to the local hospital from where he was shifted to Shaheed Laxman Nayak Medical College and Hospital for better treatment.

According to sources, eight-year-old Debraj Hantal, son of Parshuram Hantal was playing with his friends near his house. 

However, all of a sudden, he disappeared and was not found anywhere. Family members launched a frantic search, but in vain.

Later, he was spotted in a forest near the village in a terrified condition. Shockingly, the little finger of his left hand was chopped off. 
Villagers spotted a stone, blood, flowers, turmeric and other puja materials near him, suspecting it to be a case of superstitious beliefs. Fortunately, the miscreants had not killed the boy.

“Yesterday, he was unconscious and could not say anything. Now after coming to senses, he revealed that he was playing with his friends. Later, on his way home, he fell unconscious and was spotted in the forest. He is saying that he was coming home but does not understand how he ended up in the forest. He can remember his friends with whom he was playing, but cannot remember anything that happened in the forest,” alleged a relative.

“So, we suspect someone made him unconscious and chopped off his finger under superstitious beliefs. We found him in a strange way under a tree in the forest. He was terrified and crying,” she added.

No comments could be obtained from the local police in this connection.