Villagers in Bihar beat a man to death on suspicion that he informed the police about two people who returned home recently from Maharashtra, which has reported the second-highest number of coronavirus cases in the country, a senior official said on Tuesday.
The police have asked people to report to them about those who have returned to their native places recently to ensure they remain in quarantine for a few days as a preventive measure to curb the spread of the virus.
But the family members of the 36-year-old man said residents of Madhaul village in Sitamarhi district were angry that he informed police about two people who returned from Mumbai recently and beat him to death on Monday.
The two returnees have been arrested and efforts were on to nab the remaining accused, said Sub Divisional Police Officer (Sadar) Kumar Veer Dhirendra.
Dhirendra, however, added the police was skeptical about the complainant's claim.
"We learnt about their return from Mumbai from a local journalist and they were, subsequently, subjected to medical tests and their results were negative. Nonetheless, the mobile phone of the deceased will be analysed to verify the claim that he had called the police to inform about the duo," he added.
The number of COVID-19 cases has climbed to 21 in the state after five more people tested positive for the virus.
Kerala has reported the highest 234 cases followed by Maharashtra at 216.
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