Uttar Pradesh Police demolished a temple dedicated to 'corona deity', built by superstitious villagers in Juhi Shukulpur village on Dewanganj road, in Pratapgarh district, on Friday night. Police reached the village late in the night and, after demolishing the ''Corona Mai temple'', took away the remains of the broken idol in a tractor trolley, police sources Saturday said.

One person, who started, has been taken into custody, IBNS said. 

When this temple of Pratapgarh was built the news went viral on internet, and people from the nearby villages started congregating to propitiate the "pandemic god". The pandemic's second wave had wrought havoc in India, killing thousands, and the virus had for the first time spread to rural areas. Dozens of corpses, suspected to corona victims, were found floating on the Ganga river last month. 

According to the villagers, three people had died due to coronavirus infection in the village and many people tested positive.

Local people installed a "corona idol" under a neem tree in the village and started performing 'aarti' (worship) in the morning and evening.

After the news got widespread publicity, authorities cracked down and ended the "worship".(SAM)