A popular Jain temple in the old city of the Karnataka capital was burgled early Sunday by unidentified thieves, who decamped with Rs.5 lakh in cash and gold ornaments valued at Rs.16 lakh, a police official said.
"The theft of cash and gold ornaments from the temple's sanctum sanctorum came to light when the head priest opened the shrine for early morning rituals and found the valuables missing," Cottonpet sub-inspector Sunil Kumar told IANS.
Though five security guards were on night duty since late Saturday, they were in an unconscious state in the temple premises as they were allegedly given a sedative drug, which put them to deep sleep.
"On the basis of a complaint lodged by the priest, we have registered a case under Sections 380 (theft) and 457 (trespass or breaking in) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and formed a special team to investigate the incident," Kumar said.
Police also recovered footage from the four closed circuit television (CCTV) cameras installed in and around the shrine to inspect it for identifying the suspects.
"Though the burglars damaged two cameras inside the premises, we have footage from two other cameras at the entrance and outside to verify who all entered the shrine after it was closed late Saturday," Kumar said.
Located in the busy market area of Akkipete and Chikpete in the city centre, the Shwetambar temple is dedicated to a Jain Tirthankar worshipped by thousands of people, especially from the Marwari community.
