A homemaker who had been driven by lockdown-induced penury to pick vegetables from the field of a wealthy farmer here was electrocuted early on Saturday after coming in contact with a live wire.

Usharani Ghorai, 42, had been leaving the field at Hanubhunia village in East Midnapore along with others like her who had been compelled to pick vegetables without permission when she came in contact with the live wire around 4am.

The incident occurred a few hours after a storm swept through the area — one of several this week — leading police to speculate that she had probably slipped on mud because of poor visibility.

“We have received reports that several villagers had been picking vegetables from this plot in the absence of regular income owing to the lockdown restrictions,” said a police officer in Nandigram, adding that the landowner had been detained for unlawfully rigging his plot with live wires.

“We have not received any formal complaint yet from the family of the deceased,” he added.

Sources said Rabindranath Jena, 50, owned the largest plot of agricultural land in Hanubhunia and had rigged his two-acre land with live wires that were linked to his home 200m away. Jena cultivates cucumber, gourd, cabbage and cauliflower on the plot.

Jena claimed he had not intended it for humans. “I had rigged it to keep cattle away. I was not aware that it was unlawful. I made a mistake,” he said.

Usharani’s husband Ganesh Ghorai said he heard a commotion around 6am.

“They told me they had found my wife’s body lying adjacent to a plot 500m from our home,” Ganesh, a daily wage labourer who is out of work because of the lockdown, said.

“They found a few vegetables lying near her right hand,” he added.

Villagers formed a blockade at the site around 8am and demanded justice for Usharani’s family as well as compensation.

“Jena’s action could have killed several people. He did not even post a notice of caution outside the plot,” said a protesting villager, adding that there were three sets of 4mm-thick live wires up to a height of 6ft surrounding Jena’s plot.

Panchayat members from Birulia also responded to the incident, and interacted with the protesting villagers before they allowed the police to take Usharani’s body away for a post-mortem.

“It seems she slipped on mud and had to take the support of the electrified pole,” said panchayat member Goutam Bhunia.

Police sources said they had detained Jena although they had not received a formal complaint against him.

Ganesh, Usharani’s husband, said: “I am poor and illiterate. I have told the police to punish those whose act led to the death of my wife.”

“The exact cause of death has not been established yet. We will begin an investigation after a formal report and complaint from the family. We have begun an inquiry based on the villagers’ allegations,” said superintendent of police (Midnapore), Indira Mukherjee.

Usharani is survived by her husband and three children, two of whom are married and live separately.