KARIMNAGAR: Too much of anything can be dangerous, even faith. This is not a philosophical argument about metaphysics and mortality but a statement about one’s actual physical security. In a case that is both sad and terrifying, a priest in a Karimnagar temple tried to convince a woman that ‘god’ had ordered him to marry her.
Insisting that he had ‘divine instructions’, he misbehaved with the girl and even tried to sexually molest her.
The incident came to light on Friday when the woman’s parents lodged a complaint against the priest at Karimnagar One Town police station, but not before thrashing him.
The 25-year-old woman, who possesses an MBA degree, was a pious person and would visit temples regularly. In the past few weeks she was repeatedly approached by Gurrala Venkat Reddy(55), the priest and the founder of the temple.
He would tell her that god instructed him in a dream that the two of them should get married. The woman was reportedly distressed by the constant harassment, but did not stop visiting the temple.
However, on one such visit on July 9, her worst fears came true when Reddy, tried to molest her.
Frightened and distraught, she ran home to tell her parents about the incident, who immediately went back to the temple confront the priest. The confused parents tried to make some sense of the situation but an unfazed Reddy told them as well that god had a plan for him and had ordered him to marry their daughter.
Enraged, the woman’s parents thrashed Reddy and later went to the police station to lodge a complaint.
It is reported that the woman was severely affected by the incident and is undergoing counselling for the trauma. The police have refused to furnish any more details about the temple or it’s location, as they are afraid that people might be able to trace the information back to the victim.