The Fights Against Witch Hunting in India Meghna Dutta, a resident of Dublin 8 makes her own way to create awareness of with hunting in India from abroad.
by Hiya Saikia
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fter working for numerous Non-Governmental Organisations (NGO) back in India, Meghna Dutta, a resident of Dublin 8, made her journey towards Ireland to complete her second masters in Trinity College and University College Dublin. Her journey began from Jorhat, Assam; her hometown. She completed her further studies in the University of Delhi.
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I want to continue my research in this field and I believe my research project ‘Witch Hunting in Assam’ will be an eye opener for many Non-Governmental Organisations that are working towards curbing this menace in the north eastern region of India
She was also a fieldwork researcher in Passion Movement (2015–2017), an organisation that adopted slums and took care of their health and security. She also presented her research paper on “An Insight into Violence Against Women in India” at the 15th International Conference on New Directions in the Humanities at Imperial College, London, 2017.
Meghna Dutta is currently a PhD student of Wayne State University, Detroit, Michigan. Her research topic is, “Witch Hunting: A Culmination of Gender Based Violence and Superstitious Belief Among the Rabha Community of Goalpara, Assam, India.”
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Being a student of sociology background, she was involved in organisations like Touch India Trust, founded in 2003, whose main motive was to involve new generations who are willing to question and challenge the existing structure in society in order to build a better one.
Her involvement in the organisation Women In Governance as an intern in 2013, got her introduced to Witch Hunting, which is now a dream project of hers. She says “While doing my fieldwork and collecting case studies for domestic violence against women, I was startled to see the subjugating position of women with men always having the higher authority and this made me determined to work for these helpless women and bring them into forefront in the society.” Women In Governance is an organisation working against the violation of human rights. Completing her studies back in India and making the decision to work as a high school educator in Assam Valley School, Tezpur, Assam, was not the ultimate goal of the socially enthusiastic woman. She worked as a high school educator for more than a year before her dreams made her bound to do something to better society. Leaving behind her job and family back in India was not that easy, but her desire to fulfil her passions and dreams was an equally important matter to her.
Witch hunting involves branding a woman as a witch based on the declaration of a quack. Though a small percentage of men are also branded, it is mostly the women who are targeted as witches. It is associated with the use of black magic/supernatural power for inflicting harm to people and their property, bringing misfortune, causing disease or awakening love/passion within somebody. The woman who is suspected of being a witch is dragged out of their house and tortured and beaten. The victim, if they somehow manage
