The Gujarat government directed officials in Panchmahal district to restore centuries-old Jain idols to their original location near the Kalika Mata temple steps on Pavagadh hill. This decision followed protests from the Jain community, who claimed that the temple trust had removed the idols during a renovation project. The trust explained that the idols might have been inadvertently displaced while dismantling an old shed on the stairs, emphasizing there was no malicious intent.
Jain community members discovered on Monday that the idols, originally placed along the steps of an old pathway to the hill temple, had been removed and placed together in one location. Protests erupted in Vadodara, Halol, and Surat, with community leaders submitting memoranda to district collectors. In response, Gujarat Minister of State for Home Harsh Sanghavi, after consulting Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, ordered the idols to be restored to their original positions, acknowledging that their removal had deeply hurt religious sentiments.
Following a meeting with Jain leaders and district authorities in Halol, temple trustee Vinod Variya announced that the idols would be reinstalled at their original location. Variya clarified that there was no desecration of any religious structure and that the displacement occurred during renovation. He emphasized that a resolution had been reached to restore the idols to their rightful place.
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