Gujarat police have arrested a 29-year-old man, Ashwin Makwana, for allegedly conducting rituals in a crematorium and sharing a video of the act on social media, where he claimed to possess supernatural powers. This marks the first case under the newly enacted Gujarat Prevention and Eradication of Human Sacrifice and Other Inhuman, Evil, and Aghori Practices and Black Magic Act.
The arrest took place on October 15 after a video of Makwana performing rituals at a crematorium in Dhoraji town went viral. Inspector RJ Godham confirmed that this is the first FIR registered under the new law, which took effect on September 2.
“The new law was enacted to combat black magic and superstitious practices. When we attempted to upload the FIR on our eGujCop platform, we discovered no code had been assigned to the Act, indicating that no prior FIRs had been registered under it,” Godham said.
The Gujarat assembly passed the bill on August 21 to tackle black magic and other harmful practices, which became law after receiving the governor’s assent.
In the viral video, Makwana can be seen performing rituals inside a municipal crematorium, even lying on a pyre while reciting incantations. Initially, he uploaded the video to Instagram but removed it after it spread widely on WhatsApp.
Investigations revealed that Makwana, a sanitation worker, claimed he had always believed in tantric rituals and black magic, but this was his first public performance. His intention was to demonstrate his supposed supernatural abilities and retaliate against those who had mocked him in the past.
Although the offences under this Act are cognizable and non-bailable, a local court granted Makwana bail the following day.