BALIK PULAU: Police have set up a task force to probe the incidents in which four Hindu temples in the state were defiled in two months.

State police chief Datuk Abdul Ghafar Rajab said the task force was headed by his deputy, Datuk A. Thaiveegan.

On the causes being probed, he gave an example of compensation for land acquisition as one of the angles they were looking into.

He, nonetheless, played down the suggestion the incidents were due to theft as the jewelry adorning the statues of deities were not taken.

"The task force will have to determine the motive or if the acts were done by those with mental problems," he told a press conference today.

The latest incident occurred on Sunday where the statues of Lord Ganesha, Lord Muneeswarar and an aniconic of Lord Shiva were damaged at the Sri Muneeswarar Temple in Jalan Tengku Kudin.

On July 4, the Dewa Sri Mathuraiveeran Temple in Sungai Nibong Kechil was defiled after a statue of the deity Mathuraiveeran (warrior god) was smashed while a copper figure of Amman (goddess of Shakti) was stolen.

Last month, two temples in Penanti, the Sri Dharma Muniswarar Temple and Muthu Mariamman Temple, were vandalised.

Abdul Ghafar earlier witnessed Supt Lai Fah Hin handing over his duties as Southwest district police chief to Supt Anuar Omar whose previous post was the Pengkalan Hulu district police chief in Perak.

A retirement ceremony was earlier held for Lai who served the force for more than 38 years.

Resource : The Sundaily