In Madhya Pradesh’s Damoh District on March 6, several unidentified individuals allegedly vandalised a Shivling installed at a small Shiva temple. The event was discovered on March 6 in the morning when locals went to give Jal to Bhagwan Shiva at the temple close to the Government Girls Hostel in the Madiyado neighbourhood.
One of the local persons said, “When I came to offer Jal to lord Shiva in the morning, I found that the Shivling was damaged, and a big stone was also found near the Shivling. A hand bracelet and liquor bottle were also found on the spot. After that, we informed the police about the matter. The team reached the spot and started an investigation into the matter.”
Brijesh Pandey, Madiyado Police Station in-charge, said, “We received information on March 6 morning that some unknown people have dumped a stone at a small Shiva temple near the government girls hostel in the locality due to which the Shivling got slightly damaged.”
More information was being gathered in this regard from the locals so that proper action could be taken into the matter, Pandey added.
According to him, an inquiry has been opened based on the information, and residents are being questioned to learn more about the occurrence. He said that it was discovered during the investigation that a similar incident had happened in the past.
In December 2022, a man was detained on similar charges for damaging a Shivling kept under a Peepal tree in the Damoh District. The incident had occurred late in the night in Billwari Mohalla of Damoh town.
The Shivling kept under the tree was found vandalised and caused an uproar among the locals. Damoh SP TR Tenivar had said, “The accused was arrested in the night itself; he was found in an inebriated condition. The Shivling was kept under the tree in the open, it is not a temple, and the accused claimed that he threw a stone in an inebriated condition. Eyewitness, who were from the same community as the accused, had informed us about the accused, who admitted to the offences.”
The current incident, similar to the previous one, gained momentum as a large number of people gathered on the spot. According to the villager, it was not the first tampering incident with the Shivling in the area. There was anger among the people, and they demanded the accused’s immediate arrest.
(with inputs from ANI)
