Thief breaks into temple to steal, falls asleep; Police wake him up in the morning

RANCHI: A thief who was found sleeping inside a temple was caught by locals and the priest, and handed over to the police. The incident took place at a Kali temple in the Market area of West Singhbhum in Jharkhand. According to the police, Veer Nayak had broken into the temple the previous night with the intention of stealing, but ended up falling asleep there under the influence of alcohol.

Upon being informed by the locals, the police arrived in the morning and woke the thief. The stolen items were also recovered and taken into custody. Veer Nayak had entered the temple by breaking the back door. He had managed to get hold of gold and silver ornaments, the crown of the deity, and other valuable items from the temple. However, instead of escaping with the stolen goods, Veer Nayak lay down inside the temple and fell asleep.

It was the priest who first spotted the thief in the morning. At first, he was frightened to see someone sleeping near the idol, but soon realised it was an attempted theft. He immediately alerted the locals. The investigation is ongoing, said Baleshwar Oraon, the police officer in charge of the station. During questioning, the accused confessed to the crime.

Local residents and devotees believe that it was the power of the deity that prevented the thief from escaping. The priest also stated that this was an unusual incident and said the punishment given to the thief was the deity's way of teaching him a lesson.