Case file · High strangeness
The Muhnochwa ('face-scratcher')
In the summer of 2002 villagers in eastern Uttar Pradesh reported a glowing, flying object with red and blue lights that attacked sleepers at night, scratching faces and leaving burns.
2002 CE · 25.90, 81.95 · status: explained
The account
Reports came from Pratapgarh, Sultanpur, Mirzapur and Varanasi districts; several people died in the ensuing panic and mob attacks on suspected culprits. Villagers stayed up in groups with sticks.
The sceptical view
Police and scientists pointed to insect bites, ball lightning and mass hysteria, amplified by power cuts and the heat that drove families to sleep outdoors.