Kendrapara: Superstitions and blind faith continue to hold sway in rural belt of Odisha, despite several awareness campaigns. Incidents of people being killed over sorcery suspicion and branding of children to cure them of ailments keeping pouring in from different parts of the state.
On Saturday, a shocking incident of superstition took over medical science in Kendrapara district where a couple performed puja for nearly 14 hours to revive their dead son.
According to the sources, Mahesh, son of Sridhara Pradhan from Balipal village under Mahakalpada police limits, complained of chest pain. He was rushed to Kendrapara district headquarters hospital, where doctor declared him brought dead.
Instead of conducting the cremation, his parents chanted mantras by keeping a photo of Baba Rampal with a hope to bring him back to life.
They agreed to cremate him only after villagers convinced them to do so.
Notably, self-proclaimed Baba Rampal is now in jail.
A similar incident was reported from Balasore district last week. Family members of a man, who had died of snake bite, attempted to revive him by asking a sorcerer to use his supernatural powers and recite mantras over phone inside a private hospital.
According to the sources, Siddheswar Jena of Mahisamunda village was bitten by a snake and was declared ‘brought dead’ at the hospital in Jaleswar. His relatives called up a sorcerer in Baripada and pleaded him to resurrect Jena.
They also performed rituals with a branch of Neem tree on the hospital bed. Simultaneously, they held the phone near Jena’s ears as the sorcerer recited mantras to bring him back to life.
