Idol found while digging pond in Bengal

An idol of a goddess has been found while digging a pond in West Bengal's South Dinajpur district, police said on Thursday.

The idol of Goddess Mangal Chandi was found in Hazratpur village in Tapan police station area on Tuesday, an officer said.

However, local residents refused to hand it over to the police and established it at a shrine in the village, he said.

"Our pond had dried up. We found the idol while it was being freshly dug," local resident Saiful Sarkar said.

Senior district administration officials visited the village and urged the residents to hand over the idol to them, which they refused to do.

"We heard from our ancestors that many idols from the local Kali temple were stolen over time. We believe this is one of them," local resident Apurba Sarkar said.