Municipality employees in Pratpargh town on Friday beat a middle-aged man to death when he allegedly tried to stop them from scaring women defecating in the open and taking their photographs.

The incident happened near Bagwasa Kachi Basti area at around 6:30 am where few women had gone to attend nature’s call.

The municipality employees of Pratapgarh town municipality tried scaring away women and took photographs of women defecating in the open. It was then that Zafar Khan intervened and tried stopping municipality employees from taking pictures.

In retaliation, municipality employees kicked, punched and beat Khan with a stick, which led to his death, according to the FIR lodged by Khan’s elder brother Noor Mohammed.

Noor has lodged a complaint against Kamal Harijan, Ritesh Harijan, Manish Harijan, Nagar Parishad commissioner Ashok Jain and others following police have registered a case of murder, Pratapgarh Kotwali police said.

Pratapgarh Superintendent of Police, Shivraj Meena said, “We are getting the matter investigated and a case has been registered against four named accused in the FIR.”

SHO, Pratapgarh Kotwali, Mangilal Bishnoi said that the body has been kept at district hospital for postmortem. Police have been deployed considering the matter sensitive and to maintain law and order.

“We are investigating the case and no arrests have been made so far,” he said.