A Mathura contractor has been arrested for the alleged murder of two labourers following a dispute over unpaid wages, sparking community outrage and protests.
A contractor was arrested here for allegedly beating two labourers to death after they demanded their pending wages, police said on Friday.
The incident occurred in Damodarpura village in the Sadar area, they said.
Superintendent of Police (City) Rajeev Kumar Singh said the accused, Kalyan Singh alias Kalla, had called the duo -- Manoj and Hariom -- to his place on Wednesday after they demanded their unpaid wages.
Kalyan Singh, who supplies labourers for construction work, allegedly assaulted them severely, leaving Manoj dead on the spot, and while Hariom succumbed to injuries during treatment in Agra, police said.
Tension gripped the village on Thursday after news of the deaths spread, with relatives of the victims and villagers staging a protest by placing Hariom's body on the road and blocking traffic.
The protesters also clashed with a sub-inspector who had reached the spot to clear the blockade. Police later pacified the crowd, and the road was reopened.