A unique discovery of 1000-year-old Ganesha idol located atop the Dholkal hills in the interiors of Maoist hotbed South Bastar in January 2013 has gone in vain as the ancient, six-feet tall, 10th century idol in the district was allegedly pushed down the steep hill by unidentified miscreants in Chhattisgarh.
The rescue team headed by Dantewada District Collector Saurabh Kumar and Dantewada Superintendent of Police Kamalochan Kashyap later found the idol broken into several pieces far down below the hill in a valley.
The matter came to light when a group of youngsters reached Dholkal hill to visit the place which had lately become a prominent tourist spot for the visitors . The visitors were shocked when they did not find the ancient Ganesha idol at the top of the hill.
They immediately informed the villagers regarding missing of the idol which created stir among them . The locals are suspecting that it could be either handiwork of some miscreants or Maoists.
On getting information, a team comprising the District Collector and SP had reached the spot. The team found the remains of the fragmented idol from the entrenchment of the Dholkal hills.
In the meantime, Inspector General of Police (IGP) SRP Kalluri said in a statement issued here that the 1000-year-old Ganesha idol found in fragmented condition from the Dholkal hills was probably pushed downhill by the Maoists.
He said further said that the rescue team headed by Collector Saurabh Kumar and Dantewada Superintendent of Police Kamalochan Kashyap had found during the investigation that Maoists were afraid with rising number of visitors to the region.
This place is insurgency-infested area of South Bastar. Also, the villagers told the rescue team that few Maoists in uniform were spotted near the idol few days back which raised suspicion that the idol was damaged by them, Kalluri said.
State Tourism and Culture Minister Dayaldas Baghel expressed shock over the incident and said that it seemed like miscreants had pushed the idol downhill.