A man was detained on Saturday for allegedly vandalising murals showing Lord Hanuman kneeling before Sahajanand Swami, a saint belonging to the Swaminarayan sect, at a famous temple in Botad district of Gujarat, police said.
The incident comes days after some Hindu religious leaders demanded the removal of the murals from the Lord Hanuman temple at Salangpur.
"The man, identified as Harshad Gadhvi, has been detained after he vandalised and defaced the murals," said Superintendent of Police Kishor Babloiya.
A few months ago, the temple management installed a 54-foot statue of Lord Hanuman which was unveiled by Union Home Minister Amit Shah. The wall of its pedestal is covered in murals, at least two of which created controversy for showing Lord Hanuman paying obeisance to Sahajanand Swami.
Prima facie, Gadhvi managed to make his way to the statue through barricades and used a heavy rod to strike and vandalise the murals and blackened them before the police nabbed him. His act was captured on a video, which has gone viral.
Notably, the Swaminarayan sect, which is divided into several factions, refers to Sahajanand Swami (1781-1830) as Lord Swaminarayan.
Earlier, famous preacher Morari Bapu had protested against the depiction in these murals without naming anybody and urged people to “speak up.” Dilipdasji Maharaj of Ahmedabad's Lord Jagannath temple had also said no one should indulge in such acts which demean a religion.
A delegation of religious leaders on Thursday handed over a memorandum to the Botad collector, demanding that the mural be removed.
Published 02 September 2023, 17:27 IST