Mumbai: Mentally unsound man throws stones, destroys Christ cross

The decimated statue of Jesus Christ at Carter Road

The decimated statue of Jesus Christ at Carter Road

A mentally unsound man, loitering around Carter Road, destroyed a cross of Jesus Christ late on Friday evening.

The cross, which belongs to the D'Souza family, used to be frequented by Catholics living in the area, said Randel D'Souza, whose late father Peter had first installed the cross five years ago. "Initially, we thought that somebody had deliberately destroyed the cross to hurt our sentiments," said Randel, who works as a hotel maintainer. "We realised he was not mentally sound," he added. The accused had allegedly thrown stones at the statue, breaking its arms and legs.

While Randel handed over the miscreant to the police, he claims he was advised against lodging a complaint due to the man's condition. However, the police denied the charge. When contacted, Senior Police Inspector Ramchandra Dashrath Jadhav of Khar police said, "After looking at the mental condition of the accused, the complainant decided not to lodge any complaint. We have, however, detained him and are trying to locate his family."

Meanwhile, residents of the area, who belong to the fishing community, have claimed that the miscreant had been creating trouble for the last few days, but the patrolling police refused to take action. "It's the police's duty to get hold of any troublemaker. Now, they are refusing to lodge a complaint," said Jaswant Solanki, a fisherman from Carter Road.

Refuting the allegations, Senior PI Jadhav added, "The police are always available in that area. We did receive a complaint in the past, but it was not as severe as this incident."