A man in India has cut off his own tongue in an attempt to appease a deity and stop the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Vivek Sharma, 24, who works as a stone cutter with his brother Shivam and seven others at the Bhavani Mata temple in Suigam, became gravely worried about the deadly disease, according to the Times of India.
His co-worker Brijesh Singh Saab Singh told authorities that Sharma, a devotee of Kali Mata, had kept chanting the deity’s name.
On Saturday morning, Sharma said he was going to the market, but did not return to the temple, the news outlet reported.
When his brother called him, a person answered and told him that Sharma had sliced off his own tongue at the Nadeshwari temple in Gujarat.
The young man was rushed to a hospital in Tharad where doctors worked to reattach his tongue, which was found in his hand as he lay unconscious on Sunday.
“For the last few days, he was keen to go back to his native town in Madhya Pradesh. But it was impossible due to lockdown. Today, in reckless abandon he chopped off his tongue,” police sub-inspector HD Parmar told the Times of India.
“Only after thorough investigation we will know the exact reason for such a step,” Parmar added.
As of 20 April 2020, the Indian Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has confirmed a total of 17,656 cases, 2,842 recoveries and 559 deaths in the country.
