As wife and son fall ill, repentant thief returns idols to Prayagraj temple

A thief who stole "ashtadhatu" (made of eight metals) idols of Radha and Krishna from a temple near the famous Gau Ghat ashram in Prayagraj, returned them to the temple along with a written apology. In his apology, the thief described how his son and wife had taken seriously ill after he stole the idols and added that he was being haunted by nightmares. He sought forgiveness for the theft from the deities and the temple priest.

Police said some local residents spotted a man leaving behind a sack near the temple on Tuesday. On opening it, they found the idols of Radha and Krishna and a letter where the thief narrated why he was returning the idols. The idols were stolen on Sept 23. The letter written in Hindi says: "I committed a sin and out of ignorance stole idols of Lord Krishna and Radha. I tampered with the idol with an intention to sell it," the letter added. The mahant identified the stolen idols and performed puja after "jalabhishek" of the idols. Nawabganj inspector Anil Kumar Mishra said, "Priest of Gau Ghat Ashram temple, Mahant Swami Jairam Das Maharaj, had lodged an FIR about the theft of ashtadhatu idol of Radha and Krishna against unidentified thieves. The thief had packed the idols in double layers and left them near Gau Ghat Link Mark Road."