• Ezrela Dalidia Fanai, NET Correspondent, Mizoram

A resident of Darlawn village in Lalremruata retrieved a stone-engraved effigy of a deity from a depth of 10 feet, while digging a pond, located nearly 7 kms from his hamlet on July 18, 2022.

The statue is claimed to be 3.6 feet long and 1.9 feet wide, and weighs about two quintals. The surrounding area was also immediately dug up for possibility of finding other statues.

The old statue’s identity has not been formally established, however the Mizoram Gorkha Mandir Committee and local Hindus have asserted that it belonged to the Hindu goddess Kali Devi.

However, various historians and archeologists believe that the statue is belongs to Hindu idols. The recovery of an antique statue, resembling the Hindu goddess has sparked significant curiosity in the Christian-dominated state, whose history is mainly traced from Tibeto-Burman speaking language.