Mumbai: Mother Mary grotto opposite Our Lady of Lourdes Church in Malad's Orlem vandalised

Mumbai: A grotto of Mother Mary opposite Our Lady of Lourdes Church in Malad's Orlem was vandalised by miscreants early on Thursday morning.

The incident has upset members of the Catholic community who are observing the period of lent. This is the second such incident in recent months that saw the religious sentiments of the Catholic community hurt.

Vandalism happened around 5.30 am

Members of the community said the grotto whose glass front was shattered with a stone is venerated by Christians and also members of other communities. The Orlem area where the grotto stands has a sizable Christian population. According to community members, the vandalism happened around 5.30 am.

“Fortunately nothing happened to the idol. An FIR has been registered for hurting religious sentiments. We are investigating the matter and no arrests have been made yet,” said Ajay Bansal, deputy commissioner of police (Zone-11).

According to Bombay Catholic Sabha president Dolphy D'Souza, the grotto is looked after by members of the local community and was found to be vandalised when they were leaving the church after mass. “We are noticing a pattern and this is creating unnecessary insecurity among community members,” he said.

Earlier, a person had desecrated crosses and the cemetery at Mahim Church. The incident that took place in January saw nearly 18 crosses and other structures in the cemetery vandalised. Although the police managed to identify the culprit usingCCTV footage, the motive behind the incident couldn't be ascertained.