In a gruesome incident, a rural Ayurvedic practitioner was brutally murdered on Saturday over suspicion of witchcraft or past enmity in Khajuria Tandipani village, under the Gorumahisani police limits in Mayurbhanj district.
The deceased has been identified as Rameshwar Pingua, a local healer from Khajuria Tandipani who provided traditional herbal treatments by traveling across villages and weekly markets in the region.
According to reports, Pingua was returning home on his motorcycle after wrapping up his makeshift shop at the Bisoi weekly market. While navigating a deserted forest road between Kakudirama and Khajuria, a group of assailants lying in wait ambushed him.
The attackers struck Pingua on the head with a machete. The impact of the heavy blow knocked his helmet off, after which the assailants slashed his neck. He succumbed to severe blood loss at the scene.
When Pingua failed to return home that night, his family launched a search. On Sunday morning, locals spotted the body and immediately informed the family and the police.
Rairangpur SDPO Birendra Senapati and the Gorumahisani Inspector-In-Charge (IIC) arrived at the scene alongside a scientific team to initiate the investigation. Police recovered the murder weapon from the site and sent the body to the Rairangpur Sub-divisional Hospital for a post-mortem examination. Authorities strongly suspect the involvement of multiple individuals in the planned attack.
A murder case (Case No. 123/26) has been registered at the Gorumahisani police station. Preliminary investigations indicate that either suspicion of practicing witchcraft or a deep-seated prior enmity led to the fatal ambush. Further investigation is ongoing.
