A middle-aged woman was tortured by a mob on Sunday in India's eastern West Bengal state on suspicion that she practised 'witchcraft'.
The mob cut off the hair of Rupali Mandal, smeared her face with black paint, beat her up and forcibly garlanded the woman before tying her to a lamp post.
Calling her a witch, the locals threatened to burn Mandal alive if the authorities did not expel her from their locality in Malda city.
A local, Bulti Basak, said that Mandal - a housekeeper - had caused immense trouble to her family and the residents.
"We consider her to be a witch as she screams and has brought bad luck for us," said Basak.
"She stops vehicles from moving on road. She especially stops people from visiting a doctor.
"We have cut her hair off, made her wear a garland and smeared her face with black paint so that the evil inside us dies.
"We have also contacted the municipal authorities to drag her away from the city and if they do not do so, we will burn her alive."
The practice of accusing people, mostly women, of being witches and assaulting or killing them is still common in some parts of India, particularly among tribal communities, although it is illegal.
A United Nations official said in 2013 that archaic practices such as lynching women accused of witchcraft, honour killings and dowry murders persisted in India because they remained socially acceptable.
Government statistics show there were 160 cases of murder linked to witch hunts in 2013, and 119 in 2012.
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