A two-and-a-half-foot-tall metal idol, believed to be made of panchaloha, was recovered from the tank of Kandadevi Sornamoortheeswarar Temple near Devakottai in the district on Sunday.
Police said a voluntary organisation of devotees and local people were engaged in cleaning the temple tank when they found the idol in the tank bed. The inscriptions found on the pedestal of the idol suggested that it was the panchaloha idol of Lakshmi Amman, which went missing from Adikesava Perumal Temple in Pennagaram in Dharmapuri district. The right hand of the idol has been broken from the wrist.
On being informed by the Village Administrative Officer, local police took possession of the idol and handed it over to the revenue officials in Devakottai for safe custody.
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Sivaganga Superintendent of Police T. Jayachandran said the Idol Wing police had been informed of the recovery of the idol, and a team was coming to check whether it was the idol that went missing from the Pennagaram temple.