Hyderabad: The city police arrested two women for stealing two Panchaloha idols stolen from the Sri Vinayaka Temple in S.R Nagar. The idols were recovered by the SR Nagar police quickly.
On March 8, Sri Salimadugu Narender Reddy, 56, Executive Officer, Endowments Department, lodged a complained that the idols were stolen from Sri Vinayaka Temple in SR Nagar. The complainant stated that a Shiva Idol and a Parvathi Devi Idol were missing from the temple.
According to the police, the theft was first noticed by temple priest P. Naveen Kumar, who informed the complainant. The SR Nagar police launched an investigation and apprehended the accused, who have been identified as Adidala Swarna Latha, 29, and Pavani, 26. Both are residents of NBT Nagar, Road No. 1, Banjara Hills.
The police however said that investigation revealed that Swarna Latha’s brother Andrew passed away due to health issues and in January 2019, her nephew Vivek died by suicide. Later in May 2019 her sister’s husband, P.V. Ramana, passed away due to COVID-19, and in the same month her father Venkataratnam also died of health issues. Additionally, her husband, Sunil Kumar, died in a road accident.
“Distressed by these events, she consulted a pujari (Baba), who advised her that installing and worshiping God’s idols would be beneficial. Believing his words, she wanted to buy God’s idols but could not afford them due to insufficient funds,” said the release, adding that she began searching for temples where stealing idols would be easy. Swarna Latha took help from her sister Pavani for the task.
The stolen Panchaloha idols were recovered from the possession of the accused. “Further inquiries are underway to determine the motive behind the theft and to ascertain if they are linked to other similar crimes,” said a press release from the Hyderabad police.
The police has also asked temple managements and the general public to stay alert regarding temple thefts and take precautionary measures. Temple authorities have been urged to install CCTV cameras, motion sensors, and alarms to prevent thefts and also to verify staff and visitors as well.
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