Vandals desecrated a Hindu temple in Felicity yesterday before attempting to burn down the building after they cleaned out its valuables. According to Bhimsingh Bholansingh, president of the Shree Shankar Mandir, 139 Cacandee Road, it was the third attack in four days on the mandir. He said the intruder/s first struck on Saturday, returned on Monday and then again yesterday. He said they targeted the murtis in the temple, ripping up the garments and stealing the jewelry adorning them.
Bholansingh said the burglars prized open a door on the southern side of the temple to gain access and they also took the contents of a donation box. Yesterday around 1 pm, a villager alerted neighbours that fire was seen coming out of the compound. Villagers called the fire services which subsequently arrived and put out the fire. Bholansingh said when the intruder returned yesterday, a stack of plastic chairs was set on fire and it was only through the alertness of residents the mandir was saved from destruction.
President of the Sanatan Dharma Maha, Sat Maharaj, said he was outraged by the acts and hoped they were not politically motivated because of the support the SDMS gave to the PP Government for the last by-election. He said, however, he was also mindful of break-ins into religious establishments by vagrants seeking money and other valuables.
Chaguanas West MP Jack Warner, who visited the mandir yesterday, said he was disappointed by Maharaj’s statement but not surprised. He said the act seemed to be pure vandalism. Warner said he would assist the temple in getting ready for a Ramayan, carded for August 16, adding he was sure the police would be able to apprehend the culprits.
He said he also had read where Minister of National Security Emmanuel George was angry that he said crime was on the rise. He said it was not his intention to make the minister look bad but said the national population did not believe crime was going down. “If the minister is comfortable with crime the way it is so be it,” Warner said, adding there was deadly government silence on rising crime. He plans to say more about how crime can be curbed when he launches his local government election campaign on Saturday.