Police in India have saved a 3-year-old girl from imminent death at the hands of her own relatives, as they planned to “sacrifice” the toddler after getting the green light from her parents, local media reports.

The chilling incident took place in the Ganakpara village of Udalguri district on Saturday. Police arrived at the scene after they were alerted by villagers who spotted smoke billowing from the house of a local science teacher, identified as Jadab Saharia.

They became even more alarmed when they saw the teacher, along with his male and female family members, taking off their clothes after putting the 3-year-old on an impromptu altar, NDTV reports. The blood-curdling ceremony was to be conducted by a priest, armed with a long sword. The situation escalated quickly when the “priest” began brandishing his sword in an attempt to chop off the toddler’s head as part of the gruesome ritual.

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All pleas to the family to stop the bloodshed were in vain, and only angered the priest, who started threatening the villagers who sought to prevent the crime, with an axe and a sword. The family was unperturbed by the arrival of media and police, and the group’s erratic behavior only grew worse, as they started hurling rocks and utensils at police and set fire to their belongings, including a motorcycle, TV set, car, and fridge.

Having exhausted all other options, police were forced to fire several shots in the air to bring the teacher, priest, and co-conspirators to their senses. Eventually, the officers wrestled the child away from the gang and placed the family members and their machete-wielding religious leader under arrest.

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The child turned out to be a relative of her tormentors – the daughter of the science teacher’s sister-in-law. The toddler was reportedly handed over to the man voluntarily by her father. The girl was apparently to be killed with her own mother watching.

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