TN Idol wing recovers 300-year-old Anjaneyar idol, stolen 3 yrs ago

CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu Idol Wing-CID have retrieved a 300 year old Anjaneyar idol stolen from a temple in Patteeswaram near Kumbakonam.

The idol was stolen three years ago and two persons have been arrested.

According to an official release, the idol was reported stolen on 20 October 2019 from the Dhenupureeswarar temple, Patteeswaram, following which the local police had registered a case.

The case was subsequently transferred to Idol wing CID on October 5 2020, but was pending without much progress.

During a recent review of pending cases, a plan of action was drawn and a special team headed by ADSP (Additional Superintendent of Police), Balamurugan was formed to trace the idol.

The newly formed team immediately took up an investigation and commenced analysing the CCTV footage of the temple from the beginning of October 2019.

While examining the footage, they came across the footage of a few suspected persons and launched a search for them. On December 22, a person resembling one of the suspects was picked up from the Kumbakonam bye-pass and detained for questioning.

The suspect, S Neelakandan of Tiruttani broke down and confessed to his involvement in the crime, police said.

Police recovered the idol from his house.

Based on information provided by Neelakandan, police arrested his accomplice, V Manikandan (32) in Vellore.

The seized idol of Hanuman was shown to an expert who examined the idol and opined that it was a three-hundred-year-old idol installed by the Nayaka kings in the 1000-year-old Arulmiku Denupuriswarar temple.