The idol wing police gave an oral submission to the Madras High Court that it will not arrest TVS Motors chairman Venu Srinivasan for six weeks. This is in connection with an FIR registered against Srinivasan for alleged theft of idols from the Kapaleeswarar temple in Mylapore.

The special division bench comprising Justice R Mahadevan and Justice PD Audikesavalu hearing the idol theft case recorded the oral submissions and adjourned by six weeks the anticipatory bail application moved by Srinivasan on Thursday.

Srinivasan sought advance bail expressing “reasonable apprehension” of arrest in connection with the case. Srinivasan cited a writ petition filed by advocate ‘Elephant’ G Rajendran that referred to the FIR registered by Mylapore Police Station against him, and was later transferred to the CB-CID Idol Wing.

The FIR, which was registered based on a complaint from a devotee Rangarajan Narasimhan, alleged that Srinivasan replaced an antique peacock idol with a new one at the Sri Kapaleeswarar temple. Srinivasan in his anticipatory bail application said that in 2004 the State government wanted to organise ‘Kumbabhishekam’ at various temples for which a ‘Koil Thiruppani Committee’ was constituted, and he was made a member.

The execution of works, was, however, done by each temple executive officer, and also officers from the HR&CE department. Srinivasan said that he was innocent, and had no other connection with the Kapaleeswarar temple, except that he was also devotee.

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