In February 2020, lower than a 12 months of Jagan within the CM workplace, the chariot of the Prasanna Venkateshwara Swamy temple was charred in a hearth in Nellore district. This episode was adopted by sporadic instances of temple vandalism, desecrations of idols in a number of locations reminiscent of Pithapuram and Rajahmundry.
To make issues worse, the 40-ft tall picket chariot of Lord Lakshmi Narasimha at Antarvedi caught fireplace underneath mysterious circumstances in September 2020. Tensions prevailed on the temple city in East Godavari district, because the BJP, the JSP, the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) and different Hindu outfits intensified agitation over the chariot gutting.
Telugu Desam Social gathering (TDP) chief Naidu and his JSP counterpart Kalyan had then sought a CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation) probe, pointing to a sample in incidents occurring at Hindu non secular locations.
Andhra Pradesh has been a progressive, pluralistic State the place all faiths have thrived & co-existed peacefully. Nevertheless, underneath the tyrannical YSRCP regime, individuals of AP at the moment are frightened of a steady state-sponsored assault on their faiths. Greater than 20 such assaults have occurred pic.twitter.com/rogADCo6eq
— N Chandrababu Naidu (@ncbn) September 9, 2020
Maybe, essentially the most disturbing episode occurred three months on, when an historic Lord Rama idol in a small shrine on Ramatheertham hillock close to Vizianagaram was desecrated.
Naidu had then rallied at Ramatheertham in North Andhra, calling Jagan a ‘Christian CM’. “The CM could be a Christian and might need intentions to transform Hindus. However to wilfully resort to wrongdoings, with intention of conversions whereas within the CM place is inappropriate, amounting to betrayal,” Naidu mentioned, portraying Jagan a ‘Hindu drohi’ (traitor of Hindus).
Making expenses of rampant proselytization actions even at revered Hindu pilgrimage locations like Tirupati, Annavaram, Naidu had alleged that within the 1.5 years since Reddy got here to energy, “127 temple assaults passed off”, together with destruction of 40 idols at Rajahmundry. Later, the TDP put the quantity at 140-plus.
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YSRCP retorts
The tables at the moment are turned 5 years on. And the YSRCP has loads of ammunition to launch a blitzkrieg—be it the deaths of star tortoises at Srikurmam temple, or the most recent episode of the Simhachalam temple wall collapse.
Naidu, the YSRCP leaders say, endured in blaming Jagan even after changing into the CM, as within the case of the Tirupati laddu ghee adulteration episode.
“Being in a accountable place, Naidu harm the emotions of crores of Hindus, resorting to a false propaganda that the YSRCP was answerable for ghee adulteration. He sought to smear the blame on Jagan with baseless allegations,” YSRCP senior chief Malladi Vishnu instructed ThePrint.
The CM’s sensational claims, in September final 12 months, of Lord Venkateshwara’s prasadam adulterated with animal fats precipitated a nationwide outrage. The matter is underneath investigation by a CBI director supervised Particular Investigation Workforce (SIT) probe.
Jagan, in accordance with Malladi, was focused for being a Christian however “it was their chief who rebuilt a number of temples razed by the earlier TDP authorities at Vijayawada on the pretext of Krishna Pushkaralu (Kumbh).”
The YSRCP is now collating the incidents of temple, idol vandalism “akin to what occurred throughout Jagan regime and which TDP, BJP, JSP utilised for political positive aspects”
“Aside from the alleged miscreant acts at some temples like of Venkateshwara Swamy at Krosuru, razing of temples, Hindu buildings is being carried out by the native or state authorities at a number of locations like Nellore, Narasaraopeta stating it as for street widening or different causes,” Malladi mentioned.
At YSR house turf Kadapa in March, forest authorities demolished goshala and annadaanam buildings of the revered Kasi Nayana Jyothi Kshetram contained in the Nallamala forest tiger hall space.
YSRCP leaders say that because the CM, Jagan disallowed such an motion and in August 2023, wrote to the Centre for diversion of about 13 acres of forest lands for using the shrine having immense native sentiments.
On Thursday, Tirupati MP and YSRCP chief Maddila Gurumoorthy wrote to Union Dwelling Minister Amit Shah urging an pressing inquiry into repeated administrative failures and safety lapses at main temples in Andhra Pradesh.
TDP normal secretary and HRD, IT minister Nara Lokesh expressed remorse over harm sentiments of hundreds of thousands of devotees and condemned the hurried bull dozer motion of the forest division officers. The TDP scion promised to reconstruct the annadana satram (chowltry) along with his private funds.
Final month, YSRCP staged protests in Tirupati alleging deaths of over 100 cows prior to now three months on the cowsheds run by the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD).
Former TTD chairman and YSRCP chief Bhumana Karunakar Reddy demanded an intensive inquiry, difficult the TTD to show the photographs of useless cows he launched had been morphed.
“TTD government officer Syamala Rao mentioned that 43 cows had died whereas chairman B.R.Naidu says it was 22 cows. CM Naidu’s declare is that there have been no deaths in any respect within the goshala,” mentioned Bhumana, accusing them of conflicting accounts, missing transparency.
Bhumana mentioned that in Jagan’s tenure, the goshala flourished with over 550 cows of indigenous breeds from Gujarat, Rajasthan, and Punjab introduced in and 1,700 litres of milk despatched to Tirumala for day by day rituals. “No longer even 500 litres of milk is shipped to the temple. The holy cow’s life is underneath menace on the goshala,” the previous Tirupati MLA mentioned.
The YSRCP can be highlighting the deaths of star tortoises, revered as embodiment of Lord Vishnu, at Srikurmam temple, close to Srikakulam as a “grave sacrilege” ensuing from failure of the endowments division.
Malladi accused the temple authorities of cremating the tortoises with out conducting post-mortems to suppress the causes and demanded a direct inquiry into the deaths, and strict motion in opposition to these accountable.
‘Devotees deaths a routine now’
On Wednesday after the dying of seven devotees because of the wall collapse at Simhachalam, former endowments minister Vellampalli Srinivas accused the federal government of treating Hindus as a vote financial institution whereas failing to make sure their security at sacred websites.
The TDP is refuting all of the “allegations, aspersions as politically motivated.” “Whereas the incidents throughout YSRCP regime like temple chariots gutting, Ramatheertham idol vandalism had been direct assault on Hindu religion and sentiments, these are accidents, mishaps which shall be probed and the responsible punished,” Anam Venkata Ramana Reddy instructed ThePrint.
“With no different concern to focus on us, the YSRCP has resorted to politics over faith,” the senior TDP chief mentioned, including that the likes of Bhumana ought to method courts if they’ve proof of negligence leading to cow deaths.
Equally, JSP minister Nadendla Manohar mentioned that “tragedy is just not a time to do politics.”
“Pawan Kalyan is deeply anguished over the lack of lives at temples like he was when the Tirupati stampede occurred. He sought accountability from TTD and authorities authorities. Two of the deceased at Simhachalam are our get together activists. There are lapses and a probe ought to reveal the culprits, for needed motion,” he instructed ThePrint.
On Wednesday, Jagan rushed to Visakhapatnam to console the households of the Simhachalam wall collapse victims. Stating the mishap as ensuing from sheer negligence on a part of the federal government, Jagan demanded that the kin of the deceased ought to be given Rs 1 crore ex gratia like he did for the LG Polymers gasoline leak victims in Could 2000.
CM Naidu had earlier introduced Rs 25 lakh compensation in Simhachalam case.
Jagan highlighted the 2015 stampede at Godavari Pushkarams in Rajahmundry that claimed 29 pilgrim lives, six pilgrim deaths in Tirupati in January, and the Simhachalam tragedy to say that Hindu devotee deaths have change into a routine underneath Naidu.
“Chandrababu tried to politicise the Tirupati laddu concern and through Vaikunta Ekadasi, six pilgrims died within the Tirupati stampede. The police had been deputed to Kuppam for the CM’s go to and devotees needed to pay a heavy worth. Thereafter, we noticed cows dying in massive numbers at Tirupati Goshala and star tortoises on the holy Srikurmam. Bulldozers razed Kasinayana ashram at Kadapa,” Jagan mentioned.
The YSRCP head accused Naidu of habitually forming probe committees in response to incidents however “the stories are by no means identified.” The federal government ought to take stringent motion in opposition to these answerable for the Simhachalam incident “as an alternative of resorting to diversionary techniques”, he added.
(Edited by Tony Rai)
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