Unidentified miscreant booked for vandalising Mother Mary grotto

Mumbai: An unidentified person has been booked for allegedly vandalising the glass cover of the grotto of Mother Mary opposite Our Lady of Lourdes Church in Malad West on Thursday

Mumbai: An unidentified person has been booked for allegedly vandalising the glass cover of the grotto of Mother Mary opposite Our Lady of Lourdes Church in Malad West on Thursday.

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An FIR was registered in the early hours of Friday for hurting religious sentiments.

According to the locals, an unidentified miscreant hurled a stone and broke the glass of the cover protecting the statue of Mother Mary in the early hours of Thursday.

The locals called up the Malad police station after they noticed the shattered glass. The police officers said that they are scanning the CCTV of the vicinity to identify the miscreant.

Dolphy Dsouza, president of the Bombay Catholic Sabha, the grotto of Mother Mary has a history of over 100 years. “We would urge the police to seriously investigate the motive as the incident came close on the heels of the vandalisation of St Michael’s graveyard at Mahim on Jan 7, 2023.

We also urge the police to step up security to ensure such episodes do not repeat anywhere else in the city,” D’Souza said in a press release.

“The FIR was lodged early on Friday under section 295 (a) of the Indian Penal Code for defiling a place of worship with intent to insult the religion of any class,” a police officer said.