The rest of the pride, presumed innocent, will be released to the forest.

It is rare for lions to attack humans, but in the first six months of 2016 there have already been six killings in the area around the Gir Forest, which is home to India’s only population of wild lions.

In three cases, the lion ate only part of the person, which is even more unusual, said Uday Vora, the state’s forest conservator.

Wildlife officials say the lion population is 523, nearly double the park’s capacity of 300, pushing hungry prides into adjacent villages and into range of unsuspecting laborers. In April 2013, the India Supreme Court ordered a number of lions to be transferred to another wildlife sanctuary in a neighboring state, but none have yet been removed.

Mr. Vora said the attacks on humans this year were “puzzling.”

Among the theories: Because of a heat wave, laborers have been more likely to sleep in the open air, under blankets, and the lions may have mistaken them for buffalo calves. Another possible explanation is that when wildlife officials captured the adult male that eventually proved to be the killer, the “group dynamics” in the remainder of the pride were disturbed, leading the subordinate lions to attack humans, Mr. Singh said.

“We are closely observing,” he said. “There is no shortage of prey in the forest. Why they became man-eaters is a concern for us as well.”