Bomb threat to century-old temple in K’taka puts authorities on high alert

Bengaluru, March 10:  An incident of unidentified persons threatening to blow up the 101-year-old Sri Ram Mandir at Nippani town in Belagavi district came to light on Saturday, prompting the authorities to be on high alert in the backdrop of the recent blast at a Bengaluru cafe.

According to the police, the temple management received two letters on February 7 and 28, which threatened to blow up the century-old temple by March 20-21.

The first letter was found in the sanctum sanctorum of the temple, while the second was found inside the Hanuman temple located on the premises of the Sri Ram Mandir.

The letters were written in Hindi with the headline ‘Allahu Akbar’, the police said.

Following the incident, 14 CCTV cameras were installed on the temple premises. A platoon of the District Armed Reserve (DAR) has also been deployed near the temple.

Reacting to the development, Minister for Muzarai, Ramalinga Reddy, said on Saturday that he would give directions to the concerned authorities to step up the security at all the temples of the state.

On the bomb threat to the Sri Ram Mandir, Minister Reddy said the police will take necessary action in the matter.