KURNOOL: Tension prevailed in Juturu village of Patikonda mandal in Kurnool district after Dalits were allegedly prevented from entering a newly constructed Anjaneya Swamy temple by members of upper castes.
Following complaints from affected families, police and revenue officials intervened to restore normalcy and ensure temple access for the Scheduled Caste community.
Though the incident occurred on Saturday, it came to light on Monday after videos and messages related to the issue went viral on social media platforms.
According to Patikonda DSP Venkataramaiah, the Revenue Divisional Officer and the DSP personally supervised the situation immediately after receiving information about the incident and arranged heavy police security at temple premises.
Under tight police bandobast, Dalits entered the temple and offered special prayers in the presence of officials. The DSP said officials took adequate measures to prevent any untoward incidents and deployed a police picket in the village as a precautionary measure.
The incident once again highlighted the persistence of caste-based discrimination in rural areas despite constitutional guarantees of equality and social justice.