Daijiworld Media Network - Chikkamagalur (MS/SP)
Chikkamagaluru, Aug 14: A cloth in green, red and light blue colour with the picture of a mosque on it, which was found draped over the tower of a structure in which Shankaracharya's statue is installed, gave rise to flutters briefly. The incident happened on Thursday August 13 at Sringeri in the district. The said structure is located in a circle at Sringeri.
Police have arrested Milind, with regards to the issue.
Tense situation prevailed in Sringeri on Thursday, August 13 after a banner was found on the statue of Shankaracharya. BJP and Sangh Parivar held protest on the spot also.
The statue
Milind
Giving details of the incident in a press conference on Friday, August 14, superintendent of police (SP) Hakay Akshay Machindra said, "The allegation that a flag was placed on the statue of Shankaracharya on the night of Wednesday is false. It is not a flag at all. That is an act of a drunkard. He is arrested and produced before the court.
"Accused Milind consumed alcohol in a bar in the night on Wednesday and went near the Jamia Masjid and tried to sleep there. Later, he decided against it and took a banner of last year, which was at the masjid and covered himself with it as it was raining. He later arrived at Veerappa Gowda Circle. He thought that the banner belonged to some God and threw the same on the statue of Shankaracharya and left from the spot.
"Milind went to the truck yard of the town and slept there. He went to the government hospital on the morning of Thursday and took medicine for headache. He was arrested based on the CCTV footage of the Masjid and bar where he consumed liquor. The accused has confessed to his crime. This is an act of drunkard and no organization of political party is behind this. This is not a premeditated act,” the SP clarified.
BJP and Sangh Parivar had held a protest in this regard on Thursday. Former minister Jeevaraj, who spoke on the occasion had accused SDPI and PFI of putting the banner belonging to certain religion on the statue. The activists of Sangh Parivar had also accused in front of the police itself that SDPI has tried to damage the statue of Shankaracharya by covering it with flag and a little damage has occurred to the statue.