Three lightning victims buried in cow dung for 'cure'; two die

RAIPUR: Three people, including a woman, were allegedly buried in cow dung by some villagers in a bid to 'cure' them after lightning struck them in the tribal-dominated Jashpur district of Chhattisgarh, a police official said on Monday. They were later shifted to a hospital where two of them were declared brought dead, he said.

The incident took place on Sunday evening when the three were working in paddy fields in Baagbahar village of the district, located around 400 km from the state capital Raipur, Jashpur Sub-Divisional Officer of Police Rajendra Parihar told PTI. When the rainfall and thunderstorm started, they took shelter under a tree in a field. Suddenly, lightning struck there, causing serious injuries to the three people, he said.

Instead of taking them to hospital, their family members and some villagers buried them from bottom to neck in cow dung as part of a superstitious practice among them. "The villagers in the area believe cow dung has the power to heal burn injuries," he said.

Later, when some other villagers intervened, the three victims were shifted to a local hospital where two of them - Sunil Sai (22) and Champa Raut (20) - were declared brought dead, the official said. The other injured person, aged 23, was undergoing treatment at the hospital, he said.

A case was registered, the official said, adding that compensation will be provided to the kin of the deceased as per the rules.