Patiala temple 'sacrilege' accused 'wanted to hug idol', says preliminary investigation
Patiala, January 25: The man arrested for a sacrilege attempt at the Kali Devi temple in Patiala has been identified as Rajdeep (35), a resident of Nainakot village, located at a distance of 8 km from Patiala.
Preliminary investigation has revealed that the Patiala sacrilege accused is a devotee of Goddess Durga and was trying to hug the idol. The police are interrogating the accused.
Notably, the Patiala police on Monday detained a man for a sacrilege attempt at Kali Mata temple. The incident took place on Monday evening during evening prayers.
A priest at the Kali Mata temple in Patiala overpowered him and handed him over to the police. In protest against the incident, Hindu organisations Tuesday observed a banth in the city.
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The CCTV footage of the entire incident had also gone viral on social media. In the video, a masked man, scaled the enclosure — where the idol of Kali Mata was kept — and allegedly attempted to deface the idol. The man was immediately pushed away from the idol by the priest.
Meanwhile, SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal also strongly condemned the "sacrilege" at Kali Mata mandir, Patiala. "We feared & warned against conspiracy by forces from outside Punjab to spread communal hatred among Hindus and Sikhs shrines. Worst fears coming true. Let's all stay united against them to preserve peace & communal harmony," he tweeted.
Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi also strongly condemned the sacrilege attempt. He said, "Bad elements are trying to disturb peace and harmony of the state."
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Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal also condemned the incident.
Former Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh said, "Repetitive attempts to disturb peace in Punjab will not be tolerated." He urged the Election Commission to take strict action.
-PTC News
