30 men force entry into MP temple, thrash priest for not opening gates; BJP MLA's son under scanner (WATCH)

In a shocking incident, a group of about 30 people allegedly thrashed a priest of a famous temple in Madhya Pradesh's Dewas for refusing to let them in after closing hours. The incident unfolded on Friday night at Mata Tekri temple in Dewas. The temple priest alleged that a group of about 30 people forcibly entered the temple after midnight and thrashed him for protesting.

According to the police, the entire incident took place at around 12:40 am on Friday night, when the temple had already been closed.

"We close the temple on time every night. During the same time, a person named Jitu Raghuvanshi, who has been involved in criminal activities before, reached the temple with a convoy of several cars and started pressuring to forcibly open the gate of the temple," the priest said.

The priest said in a statement to NDTV, “As soon as I said that the temple was closed, they started threatening. They forcibly opened the gate of the temple and then attacked me.” The priest also suffered physical injuries in this attack and underwent medical examination.

The police have registered a case under several sections of the IPC.

A video of the incident is going viral on social media, in which a convoy of vehicles with red lights is seen going towards the hilltop of the temple.

देवास के चामुंडा मंदिर पहुंचे मंत्रीजी के साहबजादे।
10 कारों का काफिला, लाल बत्ती का रौब।
पट बंद थे, पुजारी के बेटे ने टोका—तो मारपीट कर दी
अब भगवान भी सोच में हैं—
ये दर्शन को आए हैं या दरबार लगाने #घोरकलजुग @jitupatwari pic.twitter.com/MSs4Ia5KtC

— अपूर्व اپوروا Apurva Bhardwaj (@grafidon) April 12, 2025

City Superintendent of Police Dinesh Aggarwal said, "More than 50 CCTV cameras are installed in the temple premises. All the footage is being scanned and the culprits are being identified."

BJP leader's son connection?

BJP MLA Golu Shukla’s son, Rudraksh, reportedly arrived at the temple along with a convoy of four-wheelers. A video of the MLA's son arriving at the temple gates is now circulating on social media.

The row erupted when one of Rudraksh's associates, Jitendra Raghuwanshi, a resident of Dewas, asked the temple priest’s son, Updesh Nath, to open the gates for Rudraksh to offer prayers.

When Updesh refused, citing temple rules that prohibit opening the gates at night, Jitendra allegedly abused and assaulted him.

Meanwhile, when asked about political connection with the case, an officer said, "Investigation is going on and we are not ignoring any angle."

CCTV footages are being scanned as efforts are underway to identify all vehicles. Meanwhile, the temple trust has demanded increased security.