A man whose last rites were performed by his family members after he was declared "dead" due to COVID-19 at a hospital has returned home after two years in Madhya Pradesh's Dhar district.

The family members of Kamlesh Patidar, 35, were taken by surprise on Saturday when he knocked the door of his maternal aunt's house in Karodkala village at around 6 am, almost two years after they performed his last rites, a family member said.

Kamlesh Patidar had fallen ill during the second COVID-19 wave. He was admitted to a hospital and later doctors declared him dead. After the hospital handed over the "body" to them, the family members performed his last rites, his cousin Mukesh Patidar told reporters on Saturday.

"Now, he has returned home but he has not revealed anything about where he stayed during this period," the cousin said.

Kanwan police station in-charge Ram Singh Rathore said according to the family members, Kamlesh Patidar suffered from the coronavirus infection in 2021 and was admitted to a hospital in Vadodara (Gujarat).

The doctors declared him dead due to COVID-19 infection, following which the family members performed last rites of the body given by the hospital in Vadodara and then returned to their village, he said.

The family members came to know that he was alive when he returned home on Saturday, Rathore said.

The matter will be clear after recording statement of Kamlesh Patidar, the official said.

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