A hundi stolen from one of the five temples found in a canal at Lingareddipalem village in Krishna district.

MACHILIPATNAM

11 September 2018 00:00 IST

Make away with hundis; none of the temples had a security guard

Miscreants allegedly made away with the “hundis’ of five temples, including two coming under the Endowments Department, at Lingareddipalem village of Koduru mandal in Krishna district on Sunday night. The burglaries reportedly took place between 11 p.m. of Sunday and 5 a.m on Monday, according to the residents.

The residents and the Endowment Department authorities have lodged a complaint with the police. In their complaint, they said the miscreants gained the entry into all the temples by breaking open the locks of the gates. Ironically, none of the temples had a security guard. All the temples are located in the heart of the village.

“The cash stolen is estimated to be about Rs. 6,000. The authorities of the temples are yet to identify if any other valuables have been allegedly stolen,” Avanigadda Deputy Superintendent of Police V. Pothuraju said. He said that one suspect had been taken into custody for questioning. “The suspect was recently released from prison and more details will emerge during interrogation,” he said.

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“Though the amount stolen from the hundis is less, what has shocked the residents is the way the temples were burgled,” Mr. Pothuraju said. The miscreants targeted the Sri Balatripurasundari Sametha Gokarneswara Swami temple and Ramalayam under the custody of the Endowment department, and three private temples Yellamma deity, Pothurajuswami temple and Saibaba temple. While three hundis were found in the canal that passes through the village, two were found broken open near a school in the village.

“We have deployed Clues team. The miscreants had stolen a hundi from one of the two temples under the Endowment Department last year also,” said Koduru sub-inspector S. Priya Kumar.

Endowment Department Executive Officer T. Mohana Rao said the miscreants had not entered the sanctum sanctorum of the temples. “The jewellery or ornaments of our two temples have been kept in the lockers and adorn the deity only during the special rituals,” Mr. Mohana Rao added.