An idol of Mahavira and other antiques was stolen from a Jain temple in Madhya Pradesh's Mandla district.
The theft on Saturday triggered resentment among Jain community who held a protest alleging Jain temples were being specifically targeted in the state. Police have failed to take action against the culprits, they said.
This is the second theft from Jain temples in the area within a week.
The theft took place at the Digambar Jain temple at Padav in Mandla. Police said the thieves collected eight idols, but left seven of them as they were of brass. They took the asthadhatu idol (a combination of eight metals including gold, silver, copper, zinc, lead, tin, iron and mercury) along with several silver items and seven chhatris.
Last week, several silver items including a silver throne of Mahavira was stolen from another temple.
Superintendent of police Gaurav Rajput said, "We are investigating both thefts. In this case, locks of the temple were not broken. It was opened and the idol and articles were stolen."
Members of the Jain community blocked traffic in front of the temple in Padav area protesting police inaction and demanding arrest of the accused. They later submitted a memorandum to the SP.