150-year-old Anandi Devi temple in Lucknow desecrated; cash, ornaments worth lakhs stolen

Cops scanned CCTV footage of the area and spotted a man leaving the area with a bag on a bike

October 12, 2022

Many jewelery including Mata’s crown stolen from temple; devotees hold protest

The 150-year-old Anandi Devi temple, located about 20 metres from the Chowk police station has been desecrated in Lucknow. The silver crown of the deity, the gold-plated face of the idol, and cash from the donation box have been stolen from the temple.

The police came to know about the incident only when the temple priests informed them. The incident led to protests from the locals who said the theft committed right under the nose of the police not only exposed claims of heavy patrolling but also desecrated the deity.

Former Deputy Chief Minister Dinesh Sharma and former Minister Ashutosh Tandon, who is also a local MLA, visited the temple and inquired with the police about the investigation.

In an FIR lodged on the complaint of the temple priest Atul Awasthi, it was stated that he found the lock of the inner door broken and jewelry worth lakhs and cash missing when he came to the temple.

Cops scanned CCTV footage of the area and spotted a man leaving the area with a bag on a bike. The man is being treated as a suspect by the police.

Deputy Commissioner of Police, West Zone, Shivasimpi Channappa said an FIR under the charges of theft has been lodged against an unidentified miscreant.

“Since the shutter was not broken, it appears that the miscreant had a master key to unlock it and get inside the temple. However, he failed to unlock the inner gate and broke the lock before decamping with valuables,” he said.

The locals and jewellers of the area have threatened to close the entire Chowk market if the miscreant is not caught soon. Later in the night, Mayor Sanyunkta Bhatia visited Anandi Devi temple and met with the locals who were protesting outside the premises.

[With Inputs from IANS]

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