YSR Congress Party Chairman and Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy visited the popular Lord Venkateshwara shrine at Tirumala in Chittoor district on Wednesday without signing the mandatory declaration proclaiming his faith in the presiding deity, prompting protests by Hindu groups and opposition parties.
The prime minister, who arrived in Tirumala immediately from New Delhi, received an enthusiastic reception at the temple. He wore the traditional garb of a Hindu devotee, wore the “Thiru Namam” (the Vaishnavite style of tilak on his forehead) and wore the silk clothing on his head to the temple to present to the Lord on behalf of the state government, amid chant of Vedic hymns.
However, Jagan, a Protestant Christian by faith, ignored demands from Hindu groups and opposition parties, including the Bharatiya Janata Party, the Telugu Desam Party, and Congress, that he should follow the decades-long tradition of signing the form. statement intended for non-Hindus stating that he has faith in Lord Venkateshwara.
Although Jagan had visited Tirumala several times in the past without signing the mandatory declaration, this time it generated controversy following a statement by the chairman of the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams trust board that there was no need for non-Hindus to sign the mandatory declaration and As such, Jagan did not have to sign the same.
The TTD president’s statement sparked massive protests from Hindu groups. On Wednesday, Bajrang Dal activists attempted to besiege Jagan’s Lotus Pond residence in the Banjara Hills in Hyderabad and requested arrests.
A tense atmosphere prevailed in Tirupati, where the police detained hundreds of TDP and BJP leaders and activists in preventive custody while they planned to hold protest demonstrations on the occasion of the prime minister’s visit.
TDP Chairman N Chandrababu Naidu demanded that Jagan respect temple traditions and sign the declaration intended for non-Hindus. He also demanded that according to traditions, Jagan should also be accompanied by his wife Bharati. He accused the Jagan government of hurting the feelings of Hindus.
Sri Peetham’s popular seer Swamy Paripoornananda told reporters in Hyderabad that Jagan should respect the feelings of Hindus as he would lose nothing by signing the statement.
However, the YSRCP leaders rejected the demand from the opposition parties and Hindu groups. The state minister for civil supplies, Kodali Nani, questioned the advisability of imposing such a rule in Tirumala. “Only those who have faith in Lord Venkateshwara come to the Tirumala temple. Why should someone re-declare their faith? ” I ask.
He said BJP leaders should first advise Prime Minister Narendra Modi to visit the temples together with his wife. “When Modi can go alone to Ayodhya temple to lay the first stone, why does Jagan have to take his wife to Tirumala temple?” I ask.
BJP leaders were enraged at the minister and demanded that Jagan immediately dismiss him from the cabinet. “We should not rest until Kodali Nani is removed from the cabinet for insulting Modi,” said BJP national spokesman and MP GVL Narasimha Rao.
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