700-year-old idol stolen from Prernatirth derasar

In a major embarrassment for city police, two shocking crime incidents took place almost simultaneously on tuesday within 50 metres of each other, but they are yet to make any concrete  headway in the cases.

While bikers looted a petrol pump owner of Rs36 lakh in Satellite area on Tuesday, a 700-year-old silver figurine was flicked from the much-revered, ever-bustling Prernatirth derasar in the area.

The idol was of Lord Shantinath Chovisi.

According to Satellite police, the theft took place at about 11am on Tuesday in the presence of four security guards, 5-6 priests and 24 CCTV cameras installed in the derasar premises. All the cameras were out of order for past one week due to technical glitches.

In his complaint with Satellite Police Station, Dinesh Joshi (Manager of Parshwanath Padmavati Jirnodhar Trust that looks after the Prernatirth Derasar) said the sanctum sanctorum of the temple has several idols, including a one-foot tall, silver statue of Lord Shantinath Chovisi. He claimed that the idol is 700 years old and was brought to Prernatirth from a derasar in Tokarsha ni Pol in Jamalpur.

A priest Laxman Rathod noticed all idols were in place when he visited the sanctorum that morning. At about 10.40am, he took Lord Godiji’s statuette into the basement to decorate.

He returned soon to reinstate the idol and noticed that ‘Lord Shantinath Chovisi’ was missing. Joshi and other trustees turned the derasar upside down to find the figurine, but weren’t able to; following which Joshi lodged a theft complaint with Satellite police. The silver idol weighs 800 gm and is worth Rs45,000.

Primary investigation by police has revealed that a red-sari clad woman had entered the sanctorum after visiting the trust’s office in the temple premises to claim a cash reward meant for those who observe fast.

“The trustees didn’t find her claims legitimate, as she was not registered with them,” said AS Pandya, PI of Satellite. “She then entered the sanctorum and it’s possible she might have slipped the figurine into her shoulder bag she was carrying.”

A much-concerned trustee of the derasar, Sanket Shah, has announced a cash reward for anyone who brings back the idol.

“Our religious sentiments are attached with this idol. We will give a cash reward to anyone who brings it to us,” said Shah,