Man steals Shivling from temple after prayers of marrying the woman he liked go unanswered

Police recovered the Shivling from nearby bushes. (Representational image: Unsplash)

A man stole a Shivling from a temple in Kaushambi district in Uttar Pradesh apparently after his prayer for marrying the woman of his choice was not fulfilled. Police have arrested the man and recovered the stolen Shivling.

According to locals, the accused, Chhotu (27), wanted to marry a woman of his choice but his family opposed the match. Hoping that he would be able to persuade his family members with some divine intervention, Chhotu began offering prayers to Lord Shiva.

Locals say that Chhotu used to visit the Shiva temple located in the village every morning. He believed his devotion would help him sway the minds of his family members.

He offered prayers at the Shiva temple for a month, but it had no effect. Chhotu, according to the police, stole the Shivling then.

Circle Officer (CO) of the area Abhishesk Kumar told news agency PTI on Wednesday, "Chhotu stole the Shivling from the temple early on September 1 and hid it in the bushes." When villagers found the Shivling missing from the temple they informed the police. A team from Mahewa Ghat police station reached the village and began an investigation.

"We detained Chhotu on suspicion on September 3. He later confessed to his crime," said the officer. The police team also recovered the Shivling from the bushes.

The stolen Shivling was again established in the temple. The accused has been sent to judicial custody.

In a related incident, Uttar Pradesh Minister Satish Sharma faced massive flak earlier this week after a video of him washing his hands at a Shivling in Barabanki's Lodheshwar Mahadev temple surfaced online.

The video showed the Minister of State for Food and Civil Supplies washing his hands in the 'argha', or the base of the Shivling, with the help of a priest.

The Congress and the Samajwadi Party have demanded the minister's resignation for "insulting Sanatan dharma". But, Satish Sharma countered the allegations saying he did nothing wrong and that if he were wrong, the priest would have stopped him.

(With inputs from PTI)