Man electrocutes kids in 'purifying ritual'

A 30-year-old father administered high voltage electric shocks to his son and daughter to free them of “evil spirits”, leading to the death of the children.

The children, both of whom were under five, passed away on Wednesday.

The father, Kulwinder Singh, performed the “ritual” on the directions of his mother, a self-styled occultist, who claimed that she could help the two children escape the “evil cast” and bring them back to life after death.

The 5-year-old Ranjoodh Singh and his 3-year old sister Inamika were subjected to brutal beating and unregulated electric shocks for the last three days. The bone-chilling incident took place in the village of Katfatta near Bathinda in Punjab. The children were first beaten until they ceased to react.

They were then subjected to electric shocks. After three days of being subjected to electric current, the kids finally passed away on Wednesday. Singh and his mother, Nirmal Kaur, have been arrested. The two were produced in court on Thursday and were remanded in police custody.

Amarjit Kaur, the mother of the children, had cried and begged her husband and mother-in-law to free the children. But the cries fell on insensitive ears. All through the gory “ritual,” Amarjit was locked inside a room so that she would not interfere. Many in the area feared Nirmal because of her reputation as an occultist.