The temple in Gujarat's Rajkot, dedicated to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, was demolished by his supporters after he expressed disappointment.
The temple was built up by Modi's followers who had donated huge funds to erect a bust of Modi in a seated position on a lotus, symbolising the Bharatiya Janata Party. It had cost ₹7 lakh and was due to be inaugurated on 15 February.
Meanwhile, Modi was appalled by the fact that he was glorified to the position of a deity by his followers who had put up a temple devoted to him. Modi had asked his supporters to concentrate on the Central Government's "Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan" instead of wasting resources.
"Building such temples is not what our culture teaches us. Personally, it made me very sad. Would urge those doing it not to do it," the Prime Minister said.
Following Modi's reaction, the organisation behind the construction of the temple, Om Yuva Group, had decided that they would dedicate the temple to "Mother India".
However, later, the local authorities ordered the temple to be demolished, pointing out that it was built on government's land.
"I got to know through media only that Modi temple is being built here. After getting orders from the collector, we came here and found out that it was at government's land. Then, the one who has encroached upon the land himself asked to do away with the temple," Pankaj Halvai, revenue collector of Rajkot was quoted as saying.
Modi, who was elected as the chief minister of Gujarat for three consecutive terms, is looked upon with high regards in the state. He had won the Lok Sabha polls last year making it a historical event, following which he had led the BJP to various state poll victories.
