Temple chariot set on fire in Anantapur district

CM condemns incident, tells officials to nab culprits at the earliest

The chariot of a temple at Hankanhal village of Kanekal mandal in Anantapur district was set on fire late on Monday (September 23, 2024) night.

According to the police, unknown persons broke the lock of the shed in which the chariot of Lord Rama Temple was kept and set in on fire. The incident took place after 12.30 a.m.

People residing in the neighbourhood raised an alarm, following which the villagers brought the flames under control but the front portion of the chariot was burnt by then.

According to local residents, the chariot was donated to the temple by a person who did not belong to the village. A section of people opposed the same but the majority of the villagers accepted the donation.

Clues Team collected evidences from the spot and sniffer dogs were pressed to track down the culprits.

Police took six persons into custody for questioning.

Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu condemned the incident. He spoke with the district officials in the morning and asked the Collector and the Superintendent of Police to rush to the village. He told the officials to identify and arrest the cuplrits at the earliest.

Five special teams

Superintendent of Police P. Jagadeesh, after inspecting the spot, told the media that five special teams were formed to nab the accused. He said there was no political or communal angle behind the burning of the chariot. The incident appeared to be the result of minor differences in the village, he said.

Collector Vinod Kumar said there were a couple of temples in the vicinity. One of them was managed by the Endowments Department and the other by private individuals. He said steps would be taken to install CCTVs at temples and key junctions to avoid untoward incidents.

Published - September 24, 2024 09:33 pm IST