Pune temple theft: Goddess Tuljabhavani’s crown stolen again within 24 hours of reinstallation

2 min readPuneJun 14, 2026 10:39 AM IST

DCP Shweta Khedkar (second from left) at the Tuljabhavani temple in Pune district. (Photo Credit: Special Arrangement. Image enhanced with AI.)

Within 24 hours of its reinstallation, the silver crown of Goddess Tuljabhavani at the Talegaon Dabhade temple in Pune district was stolen again on the intervening night of Friday and Saturday.

A fresh offence of theft has been registered at the Talegaon Dabhade police station, and a probe has been launched to identify and arrest the burglar.

Earlier, on the morning of May 23, around 7.30 am, the 1.3 kg silver crown was stolen from the temple near the Jijamata Chowk.

The police are said to have got clues about the accused from the video captured by the CCTV camera at the temple. In the CCTV footage that went viral, a man was seen entering the temple as a devotee. The suspect came with a coconut and even applied kumkum to the Goddess. But then he picked up the crown of the Goddess and escaped from the spot.

While probing the earlier incidence of theft, the police had arrested two persons identified as Ravi Soni, 34, and Ramesh, 36, both natives of Etawah in Uttar Pradesh, on June 6. The stolen crown was recovered from them.

Then, on the evening of June 12, the crown was ceremoniously reinstalled on the idol in the presence of Deputy Commissioner of Police Shweta Khedkar and senior police inspector Kanhaiya Thorat. But within hours of that ceremony, the crown was stolen again.

When contacted, Thorat said the police team was working on clues, and the burglars involved in crown theft would be arrested soon.