Jammu: A Hindu man was arrested on Sunday for vandalising a temple in Jammu’s Narain Khoo area of Nagrota after he suspected “black magic.”
Earlier on Sunday, after the arrest, when the Jammu police posted about the incident and subsequent arrest on their X handle, they hadn’t named the culprit. However, hours later, it came to the fore that the man arrested was a Hindu.
The Jammu police had posted, “Jammu & Kashmir Police in Jammu District successfully cracked a case of religious place vandalism and arson that took place in Narain Khoo area of Nagrota last evening.”
It added: “The investigation led to the identification and apprehension of the perpetrator responsible for the act.”
One of the users, who goes by Er Narinder Singh, commented on their post and appreciated the Jammu and Kashmir police’s work. “Great job by Jammu & Kashmir Police in solving the vandalism and arson case in Nagrota. However, to ensure transparency and trust, please disclose the names of those responsible. Without this information, the statement feels incomplete,” he wrote.
Replying to Singh’s comments, another user, Nandam, without the information regarding the culprit and assuming the culprit to be a Muslim, wrote, “Oh they won’t! They don’t name when it’s Muslims attacking Hindus.”
Most of the comments and quotes on the post were seeking the culprit’s name but received no response on X by the police.
However, the accused has been identified as Arjun Sharma from Narian Khoo, as reported by an independent news portal ‘Maktoob Media.’ A temple in Jammu has been vandalized for the second time in a week, raising concerns that there could be a deliberate effort to disrupt peace and harmony among the local communities.
As per the reports, the police said that the incident has no political angle and Arjun tried to set the temple, which is located in Nagrota, on fire and vandalised the sanctorum on Saturday and tried to set it on fire because of an old rivalry and on the suspicion of ‘black magic’ being practiced there.
“We have arrested the main accused, Arjun Sharma. He has confessed to having vandalised the temple,” said Brijesh Kumar, Superintendent of Police, Jammu (Rural), as quoted by a national TV channel.
Kumar said the timely arrest of the accused would help as there was “apprehension of a flare-up”.
Superintendent of Police Brijesh Sharma told reporters that last Saturday night, the First Information Report (FIR) was filed at Nagrota Police Station following a complaint about the desecration of idols and burning of mats at a temple in the Narain Khoo area.
“A police team, along with experts from the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) and Crime Branch with sniffer dogs, swiftly responded to the incident. Based on the investigation and CCTV footage, four individuals were apprehended,” the officer added.
According to Sharma, Arjun admitted his involvement in the incident. “The timely arrest of the culprit averted a certain flare-up in the situation. We are thankful to the people for their positive role and maintaining calm to allow police to conduct its investigation,” he said, noting that the accused acted alone.
The SP revealed that the accused cited dissatisfaction with “black magic” practices among certain community members. Additionally, personal grievances with the village ‘numbardar’ and others were mentioned.
“This case is in its initial stages, and further details will emerge as the investigation progresses,” the SP said.
Senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader had earlier visited the site of the desecration of the temple in Narain Nagrota and interacted with the locals. “… Must appreciate the prompt response of the Police and Civil administration who swung into action immediately & have collected some vital clues. Such acts are not tolerable & the culprits must be brought to book immediately & doled out examplary punishment,” he wrote on X.
“The sanctity & the dignity of religious places cannot be compromised at any cost,” he added.
After the arrest on Sunday, he posted and complimented the Jammu and Kashmir police for the “prompt” action. “I must compliment the @JmuKmrPolice and Civil administration for prompt action in the matter and apprehending the culprit Arjun who is also a local and has according to the Police confessed to the act before a magistrate and attributed his action to a family rivalry n dispute.”
On 29 June, a temple was found vandalised in Reasi’s Dharmari area sparking tension and protests by Hindu and Muslim locals. The protestors were demanding stern action against the culprits. Five days later, 43 persons were arrested by the Jammu and Kashmir police.
However, the BJP’s biggest political competitor Congress targeted the J-K administration and the ruling party for the “collapse” of law and order and pointed out their failure to safeguard temples in the region.
The Congress on their X handle wrote, “Under BJP led LG Administration…LAW & ORDER Collapsed…In a week second Hanuman temple is vandalized in Nagrota after the Shiv temple at Reasi.”
“Stern punishment for culprits & independent judicial inquiry is needed to expose the conspiracy to disturb peace and harmony,” they added.
