Chandrababu playing with Devotees’ faith

Rajamahendravaram, Dec 31: YSR Congress Party East Godavari district president and former minister Chelluboyina Venugopala Krishna strongly criticised Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu repeatedly hurting the religious sentiments of devotees, stating that the destruction of the Shiva Lingam at the historic Draksharamam temple stands as the latest and most serious example of the coalition government’s failure to protect temples.

Addressing the media at the YSRCP office in Rajamahendravaram, he said that in the last 18 months of coalition rule, innumerable incidents have taken place across temples in the state, from Tirumala to Draksharamam, exposing a complete collapse of temple protection. He alleged that instead of taking responsibility, the government has made it a habit to cover up its failures by shifting blame and indulging in political theatrics, thereby deeply hurting devotees’ sentiments.

He said the Draksharamam incident was a grave sacrilege, as the ancient Kapaleswara Shiva Lingam, dating back between the 8th and 11th centuries, was damaged, and instead of conducting a proper, transparent inquiry, the government hurriedly installed an ordinary Shiva Lingam without following religious customs, without consulting the Sringeri Peetham, and without observing the required muhurtham. He said replacing an archaeologically protected ancient lingam with a common one amounts to a serious insult to faith and tradition, and reflects the government’s attempt to erase the issue quickly rather than uphold dharmic procedures.

Venugopala Krishna said that under the coalition government, even Lord Shiva has been left without protection. He recalled that during this period there have been repeated incidents hurting religious sentiments — including the Tirumala laddu controversy, the power disruption at Kanaka Durga temple, incidents at Kashi Bugga, the stampede during Vaikuntha Ekadasi in Tirumala that claimed six lives, and the Simhachalam compound wall collapse that killed seven people. He alleged that for political gain and to divert attention from administrative failures, false and sensational allegations were made earlier about animal fat in Tirumala laddus, despite the fact that during the previous YSRCP government, tanker loads that failed quality tests were rejected multiple times. He pointed out that even the TTD Executive Officer had earlier acknowledged that tankers were sent back, and questioned how the same tankers were later allowed and allegedly used, as mentioned in the SIT report, asking who was responsible at the level of Chief Minister, Chairman and EO.

He also referred to the Parakamani theft case, stating that the accused had confessed and even pledged 90 percent of his property to the Lord as repentance, but this too was politicised. He alleged that even recent incidents like the power cut at Kanaka Durga temple were the result of failures by departments under the present government, once again hurting devotees.

Recalling past incidents, he said Chandrababu Naidu has a long history of actions that have hurt religious institutions, including the demolition of heritage structures, attempts to alienate temple lands, the demolition of the Thousand-Pillar Mandapam at Tirumala, attempts to hand over Hathiram Mutt lands to private parties, and the disappearance of hundreds of acres of endowment lands during his tenure. He also cited the 2015 Godavari Pushkaralu tragedy in which devotees lost their lives, thefts from temple hundis, and allegations of replacing sacred ornaments with fake ones as examples of repeated failures under Naidu’s rule.

Venugopala Krishna said the Draksharamam incident once again proves that the coalition government lacks both reverence and responsibility towards temples and devotees. He asserted that the hurried reinstallation of a Shiva Lingam without following established religious traditions was done only to suppress public outrage, and demanded accountability and a thorough investigation into the incident.