RAIPUR, July 27, 2015: Five antique objects, including three idols and two prayer offering plates, claimed to be 500 years old, were allegedly stolen from Jain Temple, Rajpara,

in Kanker District of Chhattisgarh, on the intervening night of Thursday and Friday. However, within hours of reporting of the theft, police recovered four of the stolen objects and a search is on for one missing idol.

According to police, the temple's priest, who claimed that he noticed the theft only on Friday, has lodged a complaint. He described the idols, made of asthdhatu, to be between 6 to 10 inches in height.

While the exact value of stolen idols is not known, officials said being antiques, they could be worth crores of rupees for collectors. Police officials said only the idols were taken from the temple and nothing else, including cash collections, were touched.

The forensic and dog squad were summoned and several sets of fingerprints were lifted. The entry and exit points of the temple have been sealed for investigations. Police said the theft appears to be the handiwork of some locals and the involvement of an insider cannot be ruled out. They said though no arrests have been made so far, vital clues had been picked up to identify the suspects.

Villagers reportedly restored the recovered idols into the temple after their recovery. Source: indiatimes.com