Krishna district police have detained the accused in the Nandi idol desecration case in Makkapeta village of Vatsavai mandal here. Police found that the idol vandalisation on 16 September 2020 was the handiwork of treasure hunters.
Krishna district superintendent of police (SP) Ravindranath Babu and SIT officer Ashok Kumar shared details of the case before the media at Nandigama DSP office.
"The idol of Nandi at Lord Kasi Visweswara temple in Makkapeta village, Vatsavai Mandal of Krishna district was desecrated on 16 September 2020. The ear of the Nandi idol was broken. The police filed a case and launched an investigation. The police have today detained the accused in this case. Srinivas from Hyderabad is found to be the main accused," they said.
SP Ravindranath Babu said that Srinivas and others have been detained.
He added, "The accused believed that there are diamonds in the Nandi idol. They planned to commit the crime to get a treasure trove from this temple. At first, they did a recce here. After that Srinivas brought a temple priest from Gampalagudem and did a recce for the second time. Srinivas, that priest and his accomplices named Vijay and Mahesh came in a car to the temple on 16 September 2020 night. They broke the ear of Nandi idol and took it away. They broke that ear part into pieces for diamonds but found nothing. Then they left the place."
"Srinivas further enquired from some other persons at Hyderabad. They said that diamonds would be in the stomach or back part of the Nandi idol but not in the ear. Then the gang again came to the temple to take the idol. They asked the local people and came to know that the idol was removed," said SP Ravindranath Babu.
The Superintendent of Police said they asked the temple priest about the idol who got suspicious and informed the police. The accused admitted that they did a recce several times and vandalised the idol for hidden treasure, the SP added.
He further added that a case has been filed against the accused under sections 447, 427, 295, 295A,153 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Section 20 of the Indian Treasure Trove Act. The police seized two cars, six mobile phones. They further seized a hammer and other equipment used for breaking the idol.
( With inputs from ANI )
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