Puja begins in Aligarh temple under police watch, probe on to find lost idols

Mahant of Achal Tal, Yogi Kaushal Nath, reached the temple and performed puja on Thursday morning.

“Many idols are missing from the temple. Those left over are damaged.

Former Aligarh Mayor, BJP’s Shakuntala Bharti, voiced concerns over the state of the temple. “I have written to the Chief Minister expressing that Hindu sentiments were hurt after discovering the temple in disrepair, with encroachments on its land. We want a proper survey to remove encroachments and restore regular puja,” Bharti said.

“The temple was built about 50 years ago on land adjoining a house. For years, people performed puja here until about five years ago when the temple was abandoned,” he said.

Gyanendra Singh Chauhan, state secretary of All India Karni Sena, said the temple was spotted during a drive by his organisation to find abandoned places of worship. “We were able to identify this temple on Wednesday,” he said.

Pankaj Mishra, in-charge of Banna Devi police station in Aligarh, said from now on, the temple will remain under police surveillance. “I have told them that an inquiry will be conducted into missing idols,” he said.

“Puja will now be performed at the temple on a daily basis– in the morning and evening,” said the Mahant.