VIZIANAGARAM: The idol of Lord Rama in the ancient Ramatheertham temple was vandalised by unknown miscreants on Tuesday. The State government ordered an inquiry into the incident. People of Uttarandhra and adjacent Odisha districts consider Ramatheertham temple in Nellimarla mandal as second Bhadradri. Locals who found the idol vandalised in the morning, informed the matter to police.
District Superintendent of Police B Raja Kumari visited the temple on the hilltop. She said stern action will be taken against those involved in vandalising the idol. Nellimarla police registered a case. Clues team and sniffer dogs were pressed into service. Special teams were formed to nab the vandals.
Having learnt about the incident, people thronged the temple in large numbers and demanded action against vandals. Meanwhile, Endowments Minister Vellampalli Srinivasa Rao spoke to SP Raja Kumari and directed the police to nab the vandals at the earliest. He instructed the Special Commissioner of Endowments to appoint a Regional Joint Commissioner rank officer to probe the idol vandalisation. Following the directive, D Bramaramba, Multi Zone-II Regional Joint Commissioner of Endowments, was appointed the inquiry officer.
Denouncing the vandalisation of the idol in the ancient temple, Opposition Leader N Chandrababu Naidu alleged that the State government had remained a mute spectator as attacks on temples are going on unabated. “About 120 temples in the State came under attack in the last 19 months of YSRC rule,’’ Naidu said, suspecting a conspiracy behind the incidents.