An Indian revenue official in Madhya Pradesh used his authority to track down a slipper thief who stole his footwear outside a temple, sparking a police investigation.
When revenue department official Arun Chandravanshi's slippers were stolen from outside the famous Baglamukhi Mata temple in Madhya Pradesh's Agar Malwa district, he did not just sit back and rued the loss of the footwear worth Rs 500.
Instead, the naib or deputy tehsildar, a key revenue officer vested with magisterial powers, tracked down a man who allegedly stole his slippers using CCTV footage and then wrote to police seeking legal action against him, officials said on Tuesday.
The incident occurred on Monday (March 2) when Chandravanshi went to the Baglamukhi Mata temple in Nalkheda town for darshan. Perturbed by the theft of his slippers, he shot off an official letter to the district Superintendent of Police (SP).
A photograph of the letter circulated on social media, drawing varied reactions from people.
In the letter, Chandravanshi stated, "I reached the Baglamukhi temple for darshan at 3:15 pm. I had removed my slippers near the receipt counter. After darshan, when I reached the receipt counter at 3:25 pm, my slippers, worth around Rs 500, were not found at the designated place."
The deputy tehsildar further said that with the help of CCTV footage and temple staff, he tracked down a slipper thief who admitted to stealing the footwear during questioning.
"In the Baglamukhi temple, slippers, shoes and expensive items are stolen frequently, which hurts people's faith," he stated.
In the letter to the SP, Chandravanshi sought action against the accused under sections 126 and 170 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (related to preventive measures).
Nalkheda police station house officer Nagesh Yadav said, "Lawful steps will be taken after an inquiry into naib tehsildar Chandravanshi's letter.