New Delhi - A suspected witch-doctor severed the head of a four-year-old boy in southern India in an alleged case of human sacrifice, news reports said on Thursday.
Angry villagers in Andhra Pradesh state’s Prakasam district tied the 35-year-old suspect to a tree and set him on fire after the gruesome murder on Wednesday, the Times of India reported.
The report said the suspect had abducted the child and after decapitating him offered his blood to Hindu Goddess Kali in the belief that he would attain occult powers and wealth.
After the boy’s headless body was found, villagers launched a hunt for the suspect and caught him on the outskirts of the village where they doused him with kerosene and set him on fire.
He was admitted at a hospital where he was being treated for burns.
A sickle that was used in the killing was recovered from suspect’s house, police said.
Hinduism in India has a centuries-old tradition of human sacrifices to appease deities, gain prosperity or ward off evil. Rare cases are still reported from regions where superstitions hold sway.
DPA