Jain Ire At ASI

Via BBC, Police blocked from Indian temple

Thousands of Jain devotees have defied a ban on gatherings of more than five people and prevented police from taking an ancient temple complex in India.

The Jain community in Madhya Pradesh want to remove a statue from one of the temples to a different location.

The police wanted to prevent Jain devotees from transferring the statue to a nearby temple.

The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) says moving the statue of Lord Adinath, the first Jain prophet, would be illegal.

But a gathering of about 15,000 devotees, who came together in Mandla district on Monday, formed a human chain with women and children at the forefront and prevented police getting near the temples, a top police official said.