Police in Salyan have arrested five people on charge of force-feeding human faeces to a woman and lashing her with stinging nettle in the name of curing her stomach-ache that they claimed was caused by witch’s curse.

Deputy Superintendent of Police Shyam Bahadur Khatri on Thursday said they have rounded five suspects for subjecting the 20-year-old woman to inhumane treatment at Kupende VDC-4. The incident that allegedly took place one and a half months ago was reported to police only on Thursday. The woman’s husband apparently decided to register a police case after his wife started developing health complications.