*Apologise to Shiva devotees, act against lathi-charge*

Tadepalli, Feb 12: YSR Congress Party Spokesperson Putta Siva Shankar strongly condemned the police lathi-charge on Shiva devotees at the sacred Srisailam shrine and demanded that the Home, Endowments, and Forest Ministers tender a public apology to the devotees. Addressing the media at the YSRCP central office in Tadepalli, he said devotees who completed 41 days of rigorous penance and walked over 40 kilometres barefoot should have been given smooth and respectful darshan, but instead were herded into congested compartments for hours without even basic facilities like drinking water, food, milk for children, or medical support.

He said the visuals of women devotees climbing walls due to suffocation and distress were shocking and reflected complete administrative collapse. The holy chants of “Om Namah Shivaya,” he said, were replaced by desperate cries of “God, save us,” while the police, who were duty-bound to protect devotees, resorted to brutal lathi-charge. Putta Siva Shankar stated that even an Additional SP wielding lathis against mala-clad Shiva devotees amounted to an insult to Hindu faith and exposed the arrogance of the administration.

He alleged that under the coalition government’s 20-month rule, repeated temple-related tragedies—Tirupati stampede, Simhachalam wall collapse, Kasibugga incident, and now Srisailam—prove that the government has learned nothing and shows no respect for devotees’ lives. Restricting darshan for Shiva devotees from the earlier 30 days to just seven days without adequate arrangements, while prioritising VIP darshans, directly led to overcrowding and chaos, he said. Despite knowing that lakhs of devotees arrive from neighbouring states during Shivaratri and Brahmotsavams, the government failed to plan even minimum security and amenities.

Siva Shankar asserted that a government that claims devotion to God would never unleash police force on fasting devotees who walked long distances with irumudi. He questioned whether a government incapable of providing even drinking water has the moral authority to run major temples. He said if accountability had been fixed honestly after earlier incidents, such negligence would not have recurred at Srisailam.
Holding the Home Minister, Endowments Minister, and Forest Minister directly responsible, he demanded immediate public apologies to Shiva devotees and strict action against police officers involved in the lathi-charge. He warned that treating temples with a “red-book mindset” and denying ordinary devotees dignity and safety is unacceptable and will not be tolerated.