Maha Sabha condemns burglaries at temples

THE South African Hindu Maha Sabha condemns the spate of burglaries at places of worship and has offered a reward for the arrest and conviction of culprits.

The Maha Sabha has urged all temple organisations to be on high alert.

The organisation is offering a R10 000 reward to anyone who provides information which leads to a recovery of the stolen murthis and the successful criminal prosecution.

In a statement issued by the South African Hindu Maha Sabha, it said: “There have been several burglaries in temples, and priceless murthis and artefacts have been stolen and sacred places violated. Sadly, crime permeates all facets of life in South Africa, and places of worship are not immune. Criminals are taking advantage of weak policing and law enforcement. We request the SAPS to set up a special investigative unit to understand the modus operandi of the thieves and especially the market for artefacts stolen from temples.”

This week the Sri Nageshwari Bhadra Kali Amman Kovil in Northcroft, Phoenix was broken into and robbed.

“Lots of items were taken over the past few months. But this has become an absolute nightmare. Between Monday and Wednesday morning our temple was broken into yet again. A total of 14 murthis or statues were stolen.

“These murthis hold great significance to us and each one of them is unique and will not be found just anywhere. One of our Murugan murthi is more than 85 years old. We are a small temple and it would take a long time for us to replace these murthis,” said Sachin Reddy, a priest at the Sri Nageshwari Bhadra Kali Amman Kovil.

He said the temple committee and its devotees would not rest until they locate the temple’s possessions and punish those who had the audacity to trespass into a place of worship and steal.

Last month the Sunday Tribune reported on the burglary of the Shree Ganesha Temple Society in Palmview, Phoenix.

The temple committee had appealed for the return of the Lord Murugan murthi that was stolen. It was one of the very expensive ones made of five different metals.

This week a local security company in Phoenix apprehended a suspect on Sunford Drive in Phoenix. He was allegedly in possession of brass items which were allegedly stolen during a break-in at a local temple.