Sikh women subjected to “exorcism-related abuse”, report finds

Women in Sikh and Panjabi communities are falling victim to faith based abuse, including "exorcism-related abuse", a domestic abuse charity has said.

A recent report into "domestic, sexual and spiritual violence" by Sikh Women's Aid (SWA) has found significant numbers of Sikh women say they have been subjected to "abusive practices linked to faith, religion, spirituality, or belief".

The report also highlighted how caste can play a role in violence against women in Sikh communities.

SWA aims to "develop lasting positive change by actively challenging harmful belief systems and practices that act as the root cause of all forms of abuse within the Sikh and Panjabi community".

Sikh Women's Aid: women beaten to remove 'evil spirits'

The report found 8% of women surveyed said they had been subjected to abuse related to religion, faith or belief.

However, SWA's helpline data showed that between 2022 and 2024, abuse linked to religion and belief made up 16% of all casework – double the number identified in the survey. SWA said this suggests "the hidden nature of this type of abuse".

The most common form of this kind of abuse was sexual assault. Other common forms included coercive control, grooming and manipulation, and financial control.

Five respondents reported "exorcism-related abuse", in which the perpetrator would "hit, beat or assault the victim in an attempt to remove an alleged evil spirit".

The murder of 10 year old Sara Sharif in Surrey by her father last year followed years of sustained physical abuse, which may have been partly linked to her Muslim parents' belief that she was possessed by an evil spirit (jinn).

NSS research has found increasing numbers of registered religious charities claiming to offer exorcisms.

SWA said the most common perpetrators of faith based abuse were 'spiritual teachers' or mahapursh. The next most common were pandits (Hindu scholars), astrologers, granthi (priests) and paathi (scripture readers). One woman said an individual associated with a Sikh faith school was the perpetrator.

SWA said the data highlights the "diverse range" of perpetrators within the Sikh Panjabi community, many of whom "hold positions of authority or power" within religious or community spaces.

One example is Surinder Singh, who allegedly presented himself as a "divine or spiritually enlightened figure" and used his "influence and status within the Sikh community to manipulate and pressure women into sexual relations".

In another case, a "godman" (a 'guru' who claims to have healing powers) allegedly sexually assaulted the daughter of a Sikh man seeking help for alcohol dependence.

SWA CEO Sahdaish Pall Bem said focusing on spiritual abuse "wasn't an easy decision" because members of SWA have already endured "personal attacks" for exposing "charlatan priests".

But she added: "We cannot ignore the exploitation by men who wear the cloak of faith but abuse the trust of their position to harm the most vulnerable in our society".

SWA recommended the introduction of mandatory reporting of safeguarding incidents within faith settings alongside "legal sanctions for non-compliance". The Government's Crime and Policing Bill has been criticised by campaigners as it does not include criminal sanctions for failing to report child sexual abuse.

A small number of women surveyed reported experiencing "caste-based abuse". SWA highlighted the case of 25 year old Kuldeep Kaur Sidhu, who was murdered while pregnant in 2008. Sidhu's family believe her murder "may have stemmed from caste-related prejudice".

Last week, Labour MP Warinder Juss called for caste discrimination to be outlawed.

NSS: Role of religious charities in spiritual abuse must be examined

National Secular Society head of campaigns Megan Manson said: "SWA's findings on the scale of spiritual abuse in Sikh communities are alarming.

"They demonstrate the need for more work to tackle this form of abuse. This includes examining the role of religious charities.

"The report also underlines the need for effective mandatory reporting laws for abuse. It is hugely regrettable that the current proposals to bring in mandatory reporting have no criminal sanctions attached. We hope the Government will amend this bill to ensure mandatory reporting laws actually do their job."