A one of its kind event has come to limelight in Bihar. In one of the police stations in the Bhojpur district of Bihar, Lord Hanuman is residing ”behind bars” for the last 17 years.
Lord Hanuman is worshipped here with immense devotion. However, from the past 17 years, he has been caught up in a legal tangle and is languishing in Krishnagarh police station in Bhojpur district. Accompanying him is the idol of Lord Ramanuj Swami.
The Sri Rangjee temple, built in South Indian architectural style in Gundi village in Ara, witnessed the theft of the two idols, way back in 1994
Since religious sentiments of the locals were attached to the temple and its idols, the Bhojpur police swung into action and recovered the idols from Gundi village in the same district.
However, the idols could not be restored to their original temple.“The court had ordered the release of the two idols on furnishing the bail bonds of Rs 42 lakh. But no villager came forward to furnish the bail bond out of fear that if they (the two idols) were stolen again, he or she would have to cough up an astronomical amount of Rs 42 lakh in the court,†said the manager of the temple Yugal Kishore Singh.
Time has taken a toll on the idols. One can notice the signs of neglect on them. While Hanumanji has lost his tail, Swami has broken his legs. The cops, however, claim to have recovered the two idols in the present state.