A 36-year-old man was beaten to death by a group of people in Bihar's Sitamarhi district due to an internal dispute, police said on Tuesday.
The incident took place in Madhaul village in Runnisaidpur police station area on Monday, sub-divisional police officer (Sadar), Kumar Veer Dhirendra said.
The deceased’s family, however, has lodged an FIR alleging that he was killed by two persons for reporting to the police about their return to the village from Mumbai amid the coronavirus outbreak, he said.
Based on their complaint, the two persons have been arrested, the officer said.
However, Runnisaidpur police station officials said they had received information about the Mumbai returnees from a local journalist and not from the deceased.
“Nevertheless, the deceased's mobile phone has been seized to verify whether he had made any call to the police,” Dhirendra said.
Health check-up was conducted on the two Mumbai returnees after their return to the village on 20 March and they did not exhibit any coronavirus-like symptom, police officials said.
Meanwhile, Dr Harsh Vardhan, minister of health and family welfare, condemned the incident and said he was sad to hear the news. He urged every Indian to be aware of their duty as a responsible citizen and come together to overcome the COVID-19 threat.
Bihar has recorded 15 positive cases of COVID-19 which include one death. Maharashtra is the worst affected state in the country with eight deaths and 198 reported cases, which includes 25 people who have recovered.
India continues to see little respite from the disease with over 1,200 reported cases and the death toll presently at 32.
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)