For Grozny woman, appeal to witch turns into public scolding

Khadizhat Malaeva, a resident of Grozny, tried to turn to a sorceress for a promotion at work; but after a conversation with Adam Elzhurkaev, a theologian, she admitted that she had violated Islamic traditions, the republic's TV channel has reported.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that since July 2019, Chechen authorities intensified their persecution of residents who provide occult services. There are regular reports on TV, in which local residents repent of practicing witchcraft.

At night on February 5, the "Grozny" ChGTRK (Chechen State TV and Radio Broadcasting Company) posted a video on its Instagram page, which shows Adam Elzhurkaev, who is also an expert at the Centre for Islamic Medicine, and two middle-aged women.

It follows from the description to the video, that Khadizhat Malaeva, a resident of Chechnya, was detained after she turned to a sorceress for help, wishing to get a promotion at work. Malaeva works as a nurse at a military hospital; apart from promotion, she asked to bedevil her colleagues, the "Grozny" ChGTRK has reported.

Some of social network users were outraged by the woman's public reprimand. "In the meantime, it's the 21st century," the user rustam_mebel95 has noted. "It's even a shame to watch that," the user milaya.29.7 wrote. "Why are you filming and posting this?" the user narmira_radjabova has asked.

Another group of users has demanded a severe punishment for both residents who practice the occult services and those who turn to them. "Why are these people released; they've ruined so many lives; they should be tried," the user sami_bak_danmark_ has suggested.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on February 5, 2021 at 08:10 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.