Mumbai— Tension rose in Mumbai’s Chembur area after devotees discovered that the idol of Goddess Kali Mata at a local temple had been dressed to resemble Mother Mary, prompting police to arrest a temple priest for allegedly hurting religious sentiments.
A video of the idol, adorned in a white-and-blue outfit traditionally associated with the mother of Jesus Christ, quickly spread on social media. Worshippers who visited the temple on Sunday were shocked to see the altered appearance and immediately alerted the RCF police.
According to officials, the priest — identified as Ramesh — told devotees that the Goddess had appeared in his dream and instructed him to dress her in this form. His explanation failed to convince the worshippers, who accused him of disrespecting the deity and causing communal discomfort.
Police registered a case under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and took the priest into custody. He was produced before a local court, which sent him to two days of police remand.
Authorities are now probing whether others were involved and whether the incident had any deeper or organised motive. The investigation will also look into the sequence of events that led to the change in the idol’s attire.
