In what has left migrants across the Manesar Industrial area in Gurugram district in a state of panic, four of them were brutally thrashed by 20 local men for not buying 'overpriced' ration from their shops. One of the victims is critical and being treated in a local hospital.

The migrants claim that while local landlords have forgone rent, they have mandated all migrants to buy ration from their shops only at the prices they decide. The fours were friends living in a single room and were studying in a local ITI (Industrial Training Institue); they defied the order, which allegedly enraged the locals. The accused, however, claimed that the migrants were drunk and created a ruckus, disturbing the entire village. The incident happened late afternoon on Thursday in Aliyar village and the police have nabbed eight of the accused so far.

"We four friends have been confined to to this rented room since announcement of lock down. They are selling flour and rice twice the price and we cannot afford it so we arranged our ration through a friend in Gurugram. They could not bear this and attacked. Over 20 local men came with sticks. They broke our door open and said that we will now teach you a lesson for not buying from us and thrashed us," said 20-year-old victim and complainant Krishna Kumar, a native of Siwan in Bihar.

When contacted, local SHO inspector Arvind Kmar told THE WEEK that they had identified all the accused from a nearby CCTV feed, and that they had nabbed eight while the search was on for the others.