Eight members of an impoverished family from one of Indias most lawless regions were shot and beheaded in a gruesome honour killing after one of their relatives dared to secretly marry a girl from a rival clan in a forbidden love match.

The killings took place after Ratan Mandal, 21, eloped with Kanchan Kumari, 18, last month, according to police.

The bodies were discovered floating in down the Ganga river in the northern state of Bihar, one of Indias poorest territories. Police said they have charged 15 people, most from the Miss Kumaris family, with murder.

The girls family invited the boys family for a meeting on the pretext of settling the dispute [over the marriage], but killed all eight and beheaded them, said Raghunath Prasad Singh, a senior police officer from the district of Bhagalpur.