A crown of goddess Kali at the Jeshoreshwari Temple in Shyamnagar of Bangladesh's Satkhira, which was gifted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has been stolen. As per local media reports, the gold-plated silver crown was stolen on Thursday afternoon at around 2:30 pm, after the temple priest had left the place of worship following the day's worship.
Quoting temple priest Dilip Mukherjee, Bangladeshi newspaper The Daily Star reported that leaning staff later discovered that the crown was missing from the deity's head. As per the report, police have confirmed the incident and stated that they are reviewing the temple's CCTV footage to identify the thief.
Jeshoreshwari Temple is one of the 52 Shakti Peeths in Hinduism. It is situated in Ishwaripur, Satkhira, and is believed to have been built in the latter half of the 12th century by a Brahman named Anari. During his visit to the temple on March 27, 2021, PM Modi placed the crown on the head of the deity as a symbolic gesture. The stolen artefact carries cultural and religious significance for devotees.
The Indian High Commission in Bangladesh reacted to the reports of the theft of Prime Minister Modi's gift and urged the Bangladesh government to probe the incident and recover the crown.
"We have seen reports of theft of the crown gifted by PM Modi to Jeshoreshwari Kali Temple (Satkhira) in 2021 during his visit to 🇧🇩 We express deep concern & urge Govt of Bangladesh to investigate theft, recover the crown & take action against the perpetrators," the High Commission of India in Bangladesh said in a post on X.
Official sources told ABP that India is deeply disturbed by the reported incident of theft of a religious article from a temple in Bangladesh. " High Commission in Dhaka in touch with Bangladesh authorities. Bangladeshi law enforcement authorities are urged to investigate the incident, recover the stolen article and bring the guilty to book," they said.
The jewel heist was reportedly caught on camera. In a video widely shared on social media, a man can be seen stealing the crown from the deity's head. However, ABP could not verify the authenticity of the video.
The CCTV footage of the incident was also shared on X by Assam's Housing and Urban Affairs and Irrigation Ashok Singhal.
"A precious crown of Goddess Kali, gifted by Hon'ble PM Narendra Modi ji, has been stolen from the Jeshoreshwari Temple in Shyamnagar, Satkhira, Bangladesh. This theft is yet another example of the Mughal-era mentality of stealing, looting, and plundering that persists in the Miyas today. No surprise, they continue to infiltrate Assam and the Northeast, committing crimes and grabbing the lands of indigenous tribals," he wrote in a post along with the purported video.