Ranchi, April 24 Unidentified criminals ransacked a prominent temple in Ranchi with an attempt to commit robbery, but the watchful security guard foiled their plans at the cost of his life, a senior police official said on Friday.
The 55-year-old security guard was bludgeoned to death after being attacked by the unknown miscreants.
The incident happened at Jagannathpur Temple on Thursday night, when the criminals sneaked into the temple with an intent to plunder the temple's wealth.
The police have launched a serious investigation into the entire matter.
Ranchi Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Rakesh Ranjan told the media that initial investigations found that the miscreants entered the temple through an unlocked gate.
The miscreants stole cash from temple's donation box after attacking the security guard.
The incident is being investigated over both purposes of robbery and murder.
The shocking incident of robbery at the city's prestigious temple has raised fresh alarm over the law and order situation, besides bringing focus back on the security gaps in police administration.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has questioned the state government over 'temple robbery' in an upscale locality, while holding it accountable for rising crime incidents.
BJP spokesperson Pratul Shahdeo termed the incident as deeply tragic and said that the occurrence of such an incident in such a sensitive area is a matter of grave concern.
Pointing out that the State Assembly is situated less than a kilometre away from the temple, making the vicinity a high-security zone, Shahdeo remarked that if a murder can take place even within a high-security zone and the police fail to catch the culprits, the situation is alarming and appalling.
He appealed to the state government to take measures to prevent Jharkhand from becoming a "hotbed of crime".
The deceased temple security guard has been identified as Birsa Munda.
According to the police, Munda tried to intervene when the criminals were stealing money from the donation box and it was during this altercation that the guard was attacked and beaten to death.
The police is scanning CCTV footage inside the temple premises to look for clues and is understood to have identified a suspect, who has been captured in the video clip.
Hatia Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) P.K. Mishra said that the crime site is being meticulously examined, and both forensic team and dog squad are assisting in probing the case.
The DSP added that a case was registered against unidentified criminals, and efforts are underway to solve the case as expeditiously as possible.
The incident also elicited political reactions as Ajay Nath Shahdeo, Chairman of the Jharkhand State Cricket Association (JSCA) and a Congress leader, demanded adequate compensation for the deceased guard's family and also asked the state administration to step up security in the high-profile zone.
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