Jaganmohan Reddy’s Tirumala visit kicks up a row
TIRUMALA: There was disquiet atop the Seven Hills on Wednesday with Jagan entering the shrine of Lord Balaji without signing the formal declaration about his belief in the Lord, which is mandatory for non-Hindus. While believers lambasted Jagan, a Christian for hurting the religious sentiments of Hindus, the TTD top brass was left red-faced.
What is worse, followers of Jagan raised slogans of 'Jai Jagan' just as they were entering the main entrance of the temple during the VIP break darshan in the morning. There were more than 60 members in his entourage which was in violation of temple rules which do not allow more than 10 members along with the VIP. TTD organized a VIP darshan for Jagan, who is an MP. But when Jagan was approached by the temple authorities for a signature on the form on Tuesday evening he refused to do so. When Jagan entered the temple around 7 am on Wednesday the Sahastra Kalashabhishekam special puja was being performed, but a TTD superintendent again requested him to sign the declaration form. But, the young leader again refused and waited along with his followers at the Ranganayakula mandapam till the puja was over.
"The Agama rules do not impose any such condition, but non-Hindu devotees must sign a declaration form which says that they believe in Lord Govinda," Tirumala Tirupati temple peshkar (administrative officer) Chandrasekhar Pillai told TOI. TTD rules, however, prescribe that non-Hindus need not sign these declaration forms every time they visit but sign at least once in their lifetime.
Jagan reportedly argued that when he had come down to Tirumala in 2009 with his father, the then chief minister, he had not filled any form. "Why should I sign the forms now? I had darshan at that time," Jagan argued with the officials.
The authorities gave up in the face of persistent refusals and allowed Jagan to have the darshan of the Lord. Karunakar Reddy, a former TTD chairman and follower of Jagan came to the defence of his leader. "Why is the TTD targeting us? They did not make Congress president Sonia Gandhi sign on the form when she visited the temple five years ago," he remarked.
TTD executive officer L V Subramanyam tried to put up a brave front saying that Jagan must have refused to sign as he had visited the temple earlier. But temple authorities were evasive when asked why they allowed Jagan to have darshan of the Lord without completing the mandatory formalities. "Thousands of pilgrims visit the temple and we have no way of knowing the religious affiliations of all the visitors. However, in case of VIPs who are non-Hindus, our authorities approach them to sign the form. Jagan is a Christian and so, they had approached him," joint executive officer K S Srinivasa Raju told TOI. But temple protection samithi activists and BJP workers cried foul. BJP leader NVSS Prabhakar flayed TTD for allowing Jagan to enter the temple by violating Hindu traditions and temple rules. "Late YSR had no sentiments for Hinduism. He even tried to build a church in Tirumala. Jagan is showing the same disrespect," TDP leader Dadi Veerabhadra Rao alleged.
The top priority VIP darshan accorded to Jagan also created a uproar. TTD has recently restricted quota passes to just 10 for each VIP. "Taking 10 or 15 persons including the family is understandable. But taking along 65 members is a clear violation," rued TDP MLA Gali Muddukrishnama Naidu. Apart from Karunakar Reddy, former TTD ex-officio member Chevireddy Bhaskar Reddy, actress Roja, YSR Congress leader Amabati Rambabu and several others accompanied Jagan.
TIRUMALA: There was disquiet atop the Seven Hills on Wednesday with Jagan entering the shrine of Lord Balaji without signing the formal declaration about his belief in the Lord, which is mandatory for non-Hindus. While believers lambasted Jagan, a Christian for hurting the religious sentiments of Hindus, the TTD top brass was left red-faced.
What is worse, followers of Jagan raised slogans of 'Jai Jagan' just as they were entering the main entrance of the temple during the VIP break darshan in the morning. There were more than 60 members in his entourage which was in violation of temple rules which do not allow more than 10 members along with the VIP. TTD organized a VIP darshan for Jagan, who is an MP. But when Jagan was approached by the temple authorities for a signature on the form on Tuesday evening he refused to do so. When Jagan entered the temple around 7 am on Wednesday the Sahastra Kalashabhishekam special puja was being performed, but a TTD superintendent again requested him to sign the declaration form. But, the young leader again refused and waited along with his followers at the Ranganayakula mandapam till the puja was over.
"The Agama rules do not impose any such condition, but non-Hindu devotees must sign a declaration form which says that they believe in Lord Govinda," Tirumala Tirupati temple peshkar (administrative officer) Chandrasekhar Pillai told TOI. TTD rules, however, prescribe that non-Hindus need not sign these declaration forms every time they visit but sign at least once in their lifetime.
Jagan reportedly argued that when he had come down to Tirumala in 2009 with his father, the then chief minister, he had not filled any form. "Why should I sign the forms now? I had darshan at that time," Jagan argued with the officials.
The authorities gave up in the face of persistent refusals and allowed Jagan to have the darshan of the Lord. Karunakar Reddy, a former TTD chairman and follower of Jagan came to the defence of his leader. "Why is the TTD targeting us? They did not make Congress president Sonia Gandhi sign on the form when she visited the temple five years ago," he remarked.
TTD executive officer L V Subramanyam tried to put up a brave front saying that Jagan must have refused to sign as he had visited the temple earlier. But temple authorities were evasive when asked why they allowed Jagan to have darshan of the Lord without completing the mandatory formalities. "Thousands of pilgrims visit the temple and we have no way of knowing the religious affiliations of all the visitors. However, in case of VIPs who are non-Hindus, our authorities approach them to sign the form. Jagan is a Christian and so, they had approached him," joint executive officer K S Srinivasa Raju told TOI. But temple protection samithi activists and BJP workers cried foul. BJP leader NVSS Prabhakar flayed TTD for allowing Jagan to enter the temple by violating Hindu traditions and temple rules. "Late YSR had no sentiments for Hinduism. He even tried to build a church in Tirumala. Jagan is showing the same disrespect," TDP leader Dadi Veerabhadra Rao alleged.
The top priority VIP darshan accorded to Jagan also created a uproar. TTD has recently restricted quota passes to just 10 for each VIP. "Taking 10 or 15 persons including the family is understandable. But taking along 65 members is a clear violation," rued TDP MLA Gali Muddukrishnama Naidu. Apart from Karunakar Reddy, former TTD ex-officio member Chevireddy Bhaskar Reddy, actress Roja, YSR Congress leader Amabati Rambabu and several others accompanied Jagan.
No comments:
Post a Comment