Temple vandalised in Jammu, culprit held

Jammu, July 7

A temple was allegedly vandalised in a village on the outskirts of Jammu triggering protests by locals, police said on Sunday, adding the perpetrator was caught within hours of the incident. This was the second such incident in the past week in Jammu region.

Officials said some unidentified persons vandalised the place of worship in Narain Khoo area of Nagrota near Jammu late Saturday night. Locals protested and demanded stern action against the culprits.

“J&K Police in Jammu district successfully cracked a case of religious place vandalism and arson that took place in Nagrota last evening. The investigation led to the identification and apprehension of the perpetrator responsible for the act,” a police spokesman said in a statement.

Earlier, a place of worship was found vandalised in a village in Reasi district on June 30. Over 43 suspected persons were detained by police for questioning in connection with the incident.

Senior BJP leader and former MLA of Nagrota constituency Devender Singh Rana lauded the district administration for taking serious note of the incident and reacting promptly to bring the culprit to book. “Such incidents are a cause of concern and cannot be tolerated. This conspiracy needs to be exposed,” he said.

He appealed to the people to maintain calm and said the administration has assured stern action against the culprits.