Mumbai: Mentally disturbed man sets fire to temple idol

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The Kurar police have arrested a man for allegedly setting fire to the marble idol of a deity in a temple at Ganesh Tekdi, Tanaji Nagar. The arrested man who consumes drugs and is mentally disturbed had allegedly resorted to this act as his prayers had not been answered by the temple deity. According to police sources, the accused has been identified as Manoj Dnyandev Redkar. This is the second occasion that Redkar has committed such an offence, the police said.

On receiving the information, the police team rushed to the small temple in Tanaji Nagar, Ganesh Tekdi locality. Due to the burn, the white marble idol of the deity had turned black and the objects around the idol were also reduced to ashes. It seemed that the accused had first wrapped the clothes around the idol and then set it on fire. We started investigating the matter and checked nearby CCTV footage and detained the suspect for questioning who later confessed to the crime," said an officer from Kurar police station.

During the investigation it was revealed that Redkar lived in an SRA building in the locality. Besides consuming drugs, Redkar has a disturbed mental status and always keeps blabbering. He had been married twice, but both wives had left him. According to the police, he often went to the temple and used to ask the deity whatever came to his mind. He allegedly turned irate as his prayers were not answered. It has been also revealed that Redkar was the same accused who had set fire to the idol in the temple a few years ago, said an officer from Kurar police station. "We have arrested Redkar and produced him before the Borivali Metropolitan Magistrate Court which remanded him to judicial custody," the officer said.