Amaravati: In a sudden turn of events, former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy cancelled his visit to the Tirumala temple due to rising tensions. Some organisations threatened to interrupt his visit unless he declared his faith before entering the iconic hill shrine.
The YSR Congress Party president cancelled his visit hours before he was scheduled to leave for Tirupati for darshan on Saturday.
Jagan Mohan Reddy said that the state is under the devil’s reign and that he was barred from going to the temple.
He said that police had notified YSRCP leaders and cadres that his visit to the Tirumala temple has not been authorised and warned them not to participate in the programme.
The former chief minister alleged that BJP functionaries from adjoining states were being called to Tirupati to stop him.
“I don’t know if the BJP’s central leadership knows this,” he said.
Jagan Mohan Reddy mentioned that thousands of policemen were deployed in Tirupati.
He appealed to YSRCP cadres and people to pray at temples in their respective constituencies and villages that “god’s wrath for desecrating Tirumala temple confine to Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu and that state is saved from this”.
Jagan alleged that since CM Naidu “lied” about using ghee adulterated with animal fat for laddu ‘prasad, he was trying to “divert” the issue by raising the issue of declaration.
He reiterated that the Chief Minister levelled allegations of adulterated ghee in ‘prasadam’ to divert public attention from “failure” to deliver on poll promises in 100 days of his government.
The YSRCP chief said CM Naidu “tarnished” the sanctity of Sri Venkateswara temple and “hurt” the sentiments of devotees by making false allegations that the ghee used for making laddus contained animal fat.
Reiterating that Tirumala Tirupathi Devasthanam (TTD) has a foolproof system to check adulteration through three levels of quality tests, Jagan said there were many instances of TTD sending back ghee tankers that failed the tests.
Jagan said the four tankers that failed the tests reached TTD on July 6 and 12, when the Naidu government had already assumed office. He said earlier that the TTD was sending samples from suspected adulterated tankers to a lab in Mysuru for cross-checking; for the first time, the samples from these four tankers were sent to NNDB, Gujarat.
Citing the statements of TTD Executive Officer Syamala Rao, appointed by CM Naidu, that ghee from these four tankers was sent back, Jagan said despite knowing the facts, CM Naidu spread the “lie” that adulterated ghee was used for making laddus and devotees consumed it.
Jagan said CM Naidu deliberately spread “falsehood” for politics, desecrating Tirumala temple and hurting the sentiments of millions of devotees.
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The YSRCP chief said that since CM Naidu’s “lies” were being “exposed,” he “diverted” the topic and raised the issue of declaration of faith.
He recalled that his father, Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy, who was chief minister for five years, participated in Brahmotsavam and offered sacred clothes to Lord Venkateswara.
Jagan said he visited Tirumala temple many times before becoming the chief minister and recalled that he walked up to the hill shrine after completing his state-wide padayatra.
“After I became the chief minister, TTD invited me every year to give clothes to Lord Venkateswara Swamy,” he said.
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–IANS
