Amid a political row in Andhra Pradesh over a sequence of incidents of vandalism of temples, with the ruling get together and the Opposition pointing fingers at one another, The Indian Express has discovered that police investigations into these incidents present that the motive behind most of them was largely apolitical — from the hope of unearthing a treasure in a single case to miscreants breaking right into a temple in a drunken state in one other.
On January 15, confronted with political warmth over these incidents of vandalism, the YSRCP authorities in Andhra Pradesh launched investigation experiences in 9 circumstances, through which opposition TDP and BJP staff and sympathisers have been accused of spreading false information and instigating the assaults. The TDP and BJP hit again, saying the federal government was attempting in charge the Opposition as a substitute of going after those that indulged in vandalism.
The Indian Express seemed on the case diaries of a few of these circumstances, and located that treasure hunters have been chargeable for six of them. Director General of Police Damodar Goutam Sawang stated 42 folks had been arrested in these six circumstances.
Further, in three circumstances in Chittoor, Srikakulam and Kadapa, the idols have been desecrated allegedly to defame temple committee members of a rival get together. In one case, in a temple situated in a distant space of Kalyandurg in Anantapuramu district, wild animals are stated to have broken the idol of Lord Hanuman.
Consider a few of these circumstances
* On October 20 final 12 months, a jewel-studded pot was discovered lacking from Lord Veerabhadra Swamy temple at Talupadu in Prakasam district. On January 6, police arrested N Rama Krishna, Ramesh Chowdary and S Rahmath, who confessed that they routinely focused temples within the hope of a very good loot.
* On September 20 final 12 months, the idol of a ‘Nandi’ was discovered broken at a Shiva temple in Chittoor district. Police arrested 5 males from Karnataka, who stated they dug up the idol within the perception that there was treasure hidden beneath it.
* On September 19 final 12 months, an idol was broken at a temple in Allagadda in Kurnool district. Per week later, police arrested S Rajashekar for breaking the idol and taking residence some components within the perception that it might assist his spouse conceive.
* In Kurnool, one individual was arrested for desecrating a temple idol, allegedly to divert consideration from a quarrel over land possession. DGP Sawang stated the accused, B Subbareddy, a TDP sympathiser, and one YSR Congress Party chief have been in a tussle over possession of land that was to be acquired by the state authorities. To divert consideration, Subbareddy allegedly garlanded an idol with slippers.
* In 4 circumstances — in Kurnool, Krishna and East Godavari districts — the DGP stated, folks in a drunken state broke into temples and broken the idols. Their actions have been caught on CCTV cameras.
* In one other case, a mentally in poor health individual allegedly set hearth to a chariot in SPS Nellore.
* Police investigations revealed that in a temple in Srikakulam, heavy rains prompted the arm of an idol to fall off. “It was not desecrated as was claimed earlier,’’ an official stated.
* In one other incident, the accused instructed police that he took residence an idol hoping that it might deliver him luck.
The DGP stated 15 main circumstances — together with that of a chariot being burnt in Antarvedi temple, desecration of Lord Rama’s idol at Ramateertham, harm to a Sai Baba idol in Vijayawada, and desecration of idols at Dwaraka Tirumala — stay unsolved.
He stated 58,871 spiritual locations throughout the state have been mapped and 43,824 CCTV cameras have been put in in 13,089 of them. So far, 15,394 village defence squads have been shaped whereas one other 7,862 will quickly be constituted.
“All the incidents have completely different motives. Some are circumstances of attempting to find hidden treasures whereas others took residence idols hoping for luck. The incidents are unrelated,’’ DGP Sawang stated.
But with the matter taking a political flip, TDP Politburo member Varla Ramaiah alleged the police have been concentrating on and implicating get together leaders in temple circumstances by misrepresenting details. “This is being finished to fulfill Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy. The DGP stated on January 13 that the temple assaults have been the handiwork of mentally unstable individuals. Then he modified his line and stated on January 15 that some political events have been concerned in acts of spiritual disharmony. Whatever the motive, there was no political get together concerned within the assaults on temples,’’ Ramaiah stated.
BJP state president Somu Veeraju stated that as a substitute of arresting the “real culprits”, the federal government was concentrating on these flagging the problem. “Instead of implicating BJP workers for highlighting the issue on social media, they should conduct a thorough probe and arrest the accused,” he stated.
YSRCP chief and Endowments Minister Vellampalli Srinivas stated, “The DGP will provide evidence for the charges filed and the government will take strict action if any one tries to raise the issue for political gains. N Chandrababu Naidu has no fear or faith and no moral right to speak on Hindus and temples,” he stated.
