Political parties trying to derive mileage out of anything is common knowledge, but after the ascent of BJP in national politics, religion and God are taking a centre stage in politics. Under these tenuous circumstances, it is not surprising that the burning of the 60-year-old chariot of Sri Lakshmi Narasimha temple in Antarvedi of East Godavari district is assuming political colour.
The Antarvedi temple is a popular religious destination visited by lakhs of devotees from various parts of the country. People firmly believe that the temple has great divine powers. The burning of chariot has made the temple a political arena for fight between ruling and opposition parties. Opposition TDP is alleging the hand of YSRCP behind the sacrilege. YSRCP, while denying its role in the incident, is accusing the TDP of propagating falsehoods because it is unable to digest the popularity of the YS Jagan Mohan Reddy government. The rebel MP of the ruling party, K Raghurama Kishanm Raju, is questioning how the entire chariot would be gutted if the fire was caused by electric short-circuit as suggested by the government. Meanwhile, Veda pundits are suggesting that burning of chariot is a bad omen. But they are not specific as to who will face the ill-effects. Some are predicting bad times for those in power. All leaders are making statements on the chariot, but people feel that no one is making sensible statements on the issue.
EO suspended
Endowments minister Vellampalli Srinivas announced suspension of the temple executive officer regarding the incident. He also promised to conduct a comprehensive probe into the incident. Apparently to embarrass TDP, the minister said an investigation was going into allegations of occult rituals in Kanakadurga temple. Attacking TDP leaders for creating a ruckus on the incident, Srinivas even suspected the role of opposition party behind the vandalism which seems like an empty allegation at the moment.
