Siraha, Sept. 5 -- year-old Sumitra Mallik lies in a small clinic in ward 10 of Sukhipur Municipality, her body covered with dark bruises from head to toe. She can barely speak, but when a reporter visited her on Thursday, she struggled to whisper: "What can I say? For them, we are not even human."

The assault that left her hospitalised took place on Wednesday morning, when members of her family tried to clear bushes in front of their home. What began as an everyday household chore quickly spiralled into violence. Neighbours accused them of attempting to encroach on land and attacked them mercilessly.

According to her daughter, 28-year-old Rina Mallik, the attackers included locals Sahadev Mahato, Sukdev Mahato, Nagendra Mahato, Dukhara...