A former Tamil Nadu Minister and about 150 people have been kept under home quarantine after they have attended the funeral of the person who died due to Coronavirus in Keelakarai, Ramanathapuram district.
 
The deceased was a 71-year-old male, native of Keelakarai and he arrived in Chennai from Dubai on March 16 and resided in Mannadi, Chennai. After developing the positive symptoms for the virus including breathing difficulty, he was taken to Stanley Medical College Hospital on April 2nd at around 9.45 am.

However, he was declared dead in the hospital at 11.45 am on the same day as his health hasn't responded to the treatment. The authorities had collected his samples for further tests and examinations following which his body was transported to Keelakarai. On April 3rd, the remains were buried as per the religious rituals at Old Jumma Mosque. Former Tamil Nadu Minister for Information and Technology and current MLA of Ramanathapuram M Manikandan and his father were among many who paid their homage to the deceased in his residence.

On April 5th, the samples of the deceased man returned positive for the virus confirming that he died due to the pandemic. Being unaware of the cause of death, the former minister and hundreds of people have attended the funeral. After the deceased was confirmed to be fatality caused by the virus, the health authorities had, on Thursday, identified 151 people including the former minister who took part in the funeral and instructed to remain under home quarantine to contain the spread.

According to the reports, 11 family members and five people who carried out the last rites during the funeral were among the list of 151 people who have been asked to stay under quarantine. The Keelakarai police department has booked the two sons of the expired man under sections 188, 278, 269, and 270 of the Indian Penal code. They have also been booked under sections of the Disaster Management Act, Tamil Nadu Public Health Act, and Epidemic Diseases Act for allegedly performing a funeral for their father who was getting treated at the isolation ward.

However, the family members claimed that they were not informed that the 71-year-old was suspected to be positive for the virus due to which the funeral was arranged as per the religious rituals. The reports stated that his demise has marked as the fourth fatality the state died due to the virus. So far, the state reported 738 positive cases and eight deaths in its territory.