A youth was beaten to death and two others were injured on Tuesday after rumours about Muslim men intentionally spitting to spread the coronavirus led to clashes in Jharkhand’s Gumla district.

“Some people were beaten up in Gumla – a tribal boy died and two other people are injured,” ML Meena, Jharkhand’s additional director general of police (operations), told Scroll.in.

The incident took place near Bhadauli village of the district, United News of India reported. Jharkhand police spokesperson Saket Kumar Singh said the situation was tense after the incident but was brought under control. A large number of police personnel have also been deployed in the area, according to News18.

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The police said rumours began about a group of people from a particular community going from one village to the other and spitting to allegedly spread the infection. Following this, a young man, roaming near Bhadauli village, was reportedly beaten up. The victim, a resident of Basia Road, was later taken to a hospital for treatment.

Later, an angry mob from the young man’s locality marched to Bhadauli, and allegedly thrashed a youth they found on their way. He succumbed to his injuries at the Gumla Referral Hospital.

Additional police personnel have been called from Ranchi, Lohardaga and Latehar and deployed in the area.

Violence against Muslims have been reported from many parts of the country ever since Tablighi Jamaat, a Muslim religious group, was linked to a large number of coronavirus cases in India.