Navi Mumbai, June 10: An FIR has been registered against a Christian nurse on charges of deliberately desecrating Hindu idols in Nerul area of Navi Mumbai.
The complaint was registered after the complainant Harshala Patil approached the Hindu Janajagruti Samiti (HJS). After the organization’s intervention, the Nerul police registered a case under sections 298 and 351(2) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), 2023.
Accusation of desecration inside a hostel room: Harshala Patil, who lives in a hostel room in Nerul, used to build a small shrine and place idols of Ganesh and Radha-Krishna in it and worship them daily. The accused nurse started objecting to the shrine after she moved here in late May 2026. She had repeatedly argued with Harshala over the issue, the complaint states.
When Harshala returned from work on June 5, she found the shrine had been moved to the area where she kept her shoes and the idols lying near it. When questioned about the incident, she allegedly said that she did not want Hindu gods. She did not believe in them. The complainant described these statements as insulting to religious sentiments. The matter was brought to the notice of the hospital administration and the nurse was suspended on June 6.
The same evening, the complaint alleges that the nurse returned to the hostel room on the pretext of taking her belongings and moved the shrine again near the shoe rack and threw the idols on the table. It is alleged that this was done many times when Harshala was not there.
Harshala also allegedly threatened her while leaving the hostel room. After receiving information about the incident, representatives of the Hindu Janajagruti Sangathan met the officials of Nerul Police Station and requested them to take immediate action. The police then registered an FIR under relevant provisions of the BNS. The investigation into the matter is ongoing, officials said.