Donations amounting to RM5,000 to the Kaliaman Alayam Hindu Temple in Ipoh have allegedly gone missing after the structure was demolished on Monday by the Ipoh City Council.

According to a police report lodged by temple committee chairperson M Murugesan, he had arrived at the premises late that morning to find the temple in ruins and the money missing.

In the report, he also alleged that prayer items, some made of gold, were also missing from the temple set up 55 years ago.

"I suspect the material (and money) was stolen during the demolition," he said in the report, also complaining that Hindus in the vicinity have been deprived of a place of worship.

When contacted, Murugesan said he was unaware of any eviction or demolition notices issued by the city council.

"If we had (known beforehand), we would not have left the valuables there," he said.

The temple is located near a housing estate, Taman Impiana Menglembu, and serves as a place of worship for 200 Hindu families.

The Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) has written to Attorney-General Abdul Gani Patail to alert him to the situation and urge him to ensure that the law is upheld.

Hindraf legal advisor P Uthayakumar argued that the demolition of the temple was against Article 8 (equality before the law) and Article 11 (freedom of religion) of the Federal Constitution.

'Act against officials'

Uthayakumar urged Abdul Gani to institute action against the Ipoh mayor and council officers involved in the demolition.

"Please take note that from Feb 2, 2006 to date, 69 Hindu temples have been demolished, threatened with demolition, burnt down or forced to relocate next to sewerage tanks. We have written 51 letters to the government," he said in the three-page letter.

"...even the opposition PAS government in Kelantan does not demolish temples and neither does the Gerakan-led government in Penang. We regret to inform you that only the Umno-led governments are demolishing Hindu temples."

In July, Abdul Gani had blamed the police for delays in submitting investigation papers to him after Hindraf threatened to sue him for dragging his feet on prosecuting those involved in temple demolitions.

Following this, six representatives from the Attorney-General's Chambers sought a briefing from Hindraf.

The group had highlighted the demolition of Hindu temples - dubbed 'illegal structures' by authorities - over the first half of the year.

In a related development, four DAP parliamentarians adopted a resolution during a parliamentary roundtable that the continued demolition of Hindu temples was against Article 11 of the Federal Constitution and violates international covenants on the freedom of religion.

The four are Chong Eng (Bukit Mertajam, left ), Chow Kon Yeow (Tanjung), Lim Hock Seng (Bagan) and M Kula Segaran (Ipoh Barat, right ), who met on Monday.

It was also agreed that local authorities are ignorant of guidelines regarding the planning of non-Muslim places of worship.

"In the process, the authorities have clearly exhibited a lack of understanding, appreciation and feelings for the other religious communities," they said in a statement.