A post accompanied by several pictures of a broken idol of Lord Ganesha is being shared on social media platforms, claiming that Muslims have broken the idol in Taulihawa, located in the Kathela Samay Mata area of Siddharth Nagar district, Uttar Pradesh (here and here). In this article, let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Muslims broke the idol of Lord Ganesha in Siddharth Nagar district, Uttar Pradesh.
Fact: According to news reports and police, the idol of Lord Ganesha was broken by the temple priest, Kricharam, not by the Muslim men. On 16 July 2024, Kricharam, a priest from a temple in Taulihawa village, filed a complaint at the Kathela Samay Mata police station in Siddharth Nagar district, Uttar Pradesh, accusing two Muslim men, Mannan and Sonu, of vandalizing the temple and breaking the idol of Lord Ganesha. A case was registered, and during the investigation, the police discovered that it was Kricharam who had broken the idol, not the two Muslim men. Kricharam admitted that he acted out of enmity towards the families of Sonu and Mannan. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
To check the veracity of the viral claim, we conducted a relevant keyword search on the internet. This search led us to several news reports about the incident (here, here, here and here). According to these reports, on 16 July 2024, a priest named Kricharam, from a temple in Taulihawa village, filed a complaint at Kathela Samay Mata police station in Siddharth Nagar district, Uttar Pradesh, accusing two Muslim men, Mannan and Sonu, of vandalizing the temple, breaking an idol of Lord Ganesha, and threatening him to stop his religious activities.
Reacting immediately, the local police registered an FIR against the two men, charging them with causing harm and defiling a place of worship. However, during the investigation, the police learned from three children who were playing near the temple that it was Kricharam who broke the idol, not the two Muslim men. Based on this testimony, the police interrogated the priest, and he confessed to breaking the idol himself. He admitted that due to his enmity with the families of Sonu and Mannan, he decided to act this way.
Reports further stated that Deputy Superintendent of Police Darvesh Kumar, also the circle officer of Shohratgarh Police station, under whose jurisdiction the village falls, informed that legal action is now being pursued against the priest for his false accusations. Subsequently, we also found a clarification video posted by Siddharth Nagar police on their official social media pages (here, here). From all this information, it is evident that the idol of Lord Ganesha was broken by the temple priest, Kricharam, not by the Muslim men. The FIR filed in this incident can be viewed here.
To sum up, the idol of Lord Ganesha was broken by the temple priest, Kricharam, not by the Muslim men.
