Imphal, May 10 2009: TENSION ERUPTED among the residents of Heingang area after miscreants desecrated and vandalised statues and other materials belonging to Iputhou Laiming Koloi temple located at Heingang Marching hill (also known as Hannaba Ching) under Heingang police station in Imphal east last night.

Miscreants not only destroyed the materials inside the temple but also dropped the material to the pond nearby the temple.

With regard to the destruction of the material of the temple, joint secretary of the Laining Koloi Awang Marjing Chingtampok Pakhangba Ithup Pathek Ahum nongdam Sanglen Thougal Lup, S Brojendro said people belonging to a particular community who has been calming that the land belong to them, is behind the act.

He said the said temple was donated by the effort of the people of the area under the active initiative of late Mutum Gandharsing Meetei in 1952.Former leader of the UFO (Satjal Academy) late RK Manisana, Chingsumbam Akaba, Bidhu Arangba also took major role in the process.

Since then, people have been worshipping Iputhou Pakhangba and Ibenthou Nurabi.

But in the year 2005, some miscreants stole the idol of the god and drew at the gorge, the joint secretary said adding that yesterday destruction act is the fifth time which the temple is under attack.

Not only this, at many instant, the GI-sheet roofing of the guest house at the temple had also been stolen and later dismantled.

The joint secretary also recalled that the land was taken at lease from the state forest department which keep as Central Reserved Forest area by the governing body under the initiative of the then circle MLA Waikhom Jagor and locals keep protected it as forest area by planting trees to become a dwelling place.

Apart from this, the surrounding areas of the hills have been owned by villages like Heingang, Ahallup, Meetei Keirang, Khurai and Pangei areas.

But with a view to uplift communal harmony and maintain love bond with the Muslim residing in the area some of the land at the southern side of the Khuman Chingjin have been handed over to a register body of the Muslim community.

But, against the agreed condition, they started encroaching the area beyond the given land and created a village called Kairang Muslim Khunou.

Not only killing wildlife in the forest area, they even threatened womenfolk passing to the village, the joint secretary expressed.

Media persons also witnessed the destruction of the materials of the temple and also lying the idol of the Ibuthou Pakhangba at the nearby pond.

Many words stating that the land is no more for the Marjing, it has been allotted to them by W Jagor during his tenure as MLA, Laiharouba means worshipping Saitan were found written in Bengali scripts on the wall of the temple.

A police team led by second OC of the Heingang police station inspected the damaged part of the temple.

A suo-motto case has also registered by the police to arrest the culprits behind the destruction act, the second OC informed.

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