The temple holds a special importance among the Thackeray family members as Goddess Ekvira is their family deity.
Villagers staying around Karla hill near Lonavala woke up on Tuesday to find that the dome of the famous Ekvira temple had been stolen. The Ekvira goddess is a deity revered by the Thackeray family and Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray visits the temple at least once every year.
The incident came to light at around 7 am on Tuesday morning when some villagers visiting the temple noticed that the golden dome of the temple was missing. The trustees approached the Lonavala rural police and lodged a complaint.
Speaking to DNA, assistant police inspector Sadhana Patil, in charge of Lonavala rural police station said, "The dome was stolen between 2 am and 3 am in the wee hours of Tuesday. The incident came to light only after sunrise."
According to villagers, the gold plated dome made of a five metal alloy was donated to the temple by a devotee. The temple area has CCTV cameras and the footage was being examined to find clues. "We are checking the CCTV footage of the temple. We will be questioning the security guards stationed at the site," Patil added.
The temple holds a special importance among the Thackeray family members as Goddess Ekvira is their family deity. Even after the assembly elections in 2014, Uddhav Thackeray had visited the temple with his party's 63 legislators to seek blessings.
Earlier in 2011, a gang of dacoits had attempted to rob the temple, but the bid was foiled by a policeman. In 2016 too, a gang of robbers had decamped with some ornaments from a shrine located at the foothills where devotees offer prayers before climbing the hill and making their way to the main temple.
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