'Belongs to deity now': Temple refuses to return dropped iPhone
Authorities at the Arulmigu Kandaswamy temple in Tamil Nadu's Thiruporur allegedly refused to return an iPhone to a devotee, who had accidentally dropped it into the temple's donation box or "hundi." The temple authorities refused to return the device, saying anything placed in the hundi becomes the property of the deity. According to the Times of India, the devotee, Dinesh, was trying to donate money when his phone slipped from his pocket into the hundi.
Devotee's immediate request for phone retrieval denied
Despite Dinesh's immediate plea to get his phone back, temple officials maintained that offerings in the hundi cannot be returned. They explained that as per tradition, the hundi is opened only once in two months. Dinesh then filed a complaint with the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR and CE) officials, asking to be informed when the hundi would be opened. When the hundi was finally opened on Friday, Dinesh reached the temple hoping to get his phone back.
Temple authorities retain iPhone, return SIM card
However, he was told that the device would stay with the temple. The authorities did offer him his SIM card and access to download any important data from it. But having already got a new SIM card, Dinesh left without taking any further action. "We are not clear whether he dropped it as an offering and later changed his mind, because the hundi is well protected with an iron fence," Temple executive officer Kumaravel said.
