VIJAYAWADA : Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu said the government is in consultations with the Jeeyangars, Kanchi pontiffs and Sanathana Dharma Pandits on how to proceed further with Tirumala temple.
The steps that need to be taken and how to implement them with regard to Tirumala are being discussed and a decision will soon be taken, he said. He said that quality tests of prasadams and ‘Samprokshana’ (operation cleansing) will soon be taken up in all the temples in the State.
In an informal interaction with mediapersons at the party headquarters on Saturday, the Chief Minister asserted that his government accords highest respect to the sanctity of temples and the sentiments of devotees.
Seeking to know how it is possible to get a kg of cow ghee at Rs 320, he asked why reverse tendering process followed in the ghee used for preparation of the Prasadam of the Lord. One should be very careful while taking any kind of decisions with regard to the world famous sacred pilgrim centre of Tirumala and of Lord Venkateswara, he felt.
Not only they committed the crime but also shamelessly claiming it to be a diversional politics, Naidu said taking a dig at the remarks of YSRC president YS Jagan Mohan Reddy.
Immediately after assuming charge as the Chief Minister, orders were given to the TTD Executive Officer to cleanse the Seven Hills of Tirumala. The EO has taken several measures to improve the quality of Laddu and blacklisted various companies that were earlier supplying ghee, he mentioned.
Instead of replying to the report given by the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) on the sub-standard ghee used in making Tirumala Prasadam, the YSRC leaders are simply trying to refute it, Naidu said and asked what should such people be called as.
The Chief Minister felt that the Lord himself made him reveal these facts on the Laddu. “The Almighty does everything and we are only nominal. That is what I personally feel,” he observed. Every religion has certain traditions and commitments and the government needs to respect all of them, Naidu said.
Regretting that temples across the State have witnessed various kinds of transgressions during the previous government, the Chief Minister said that when the divine head of Lord Rama was removed from the idol at Ramatheertham no one bothered about it. At least action was not initiated against any one, he said.
The Chief Minister said that the previous government simply played with the sentiments of the people and did not honour their feelings. Not only that government has destroyed Amaravati but also counter-attacked those who raised their voice and spread false propaganda against such persons, he said.
How the YSRC leaders falsely rebutted the murder of ‘Babai’ (YS Vivekananda Reddy, paternal uncle of Jagan) in a similar manner they are refuting the issue of boats in Prakasam Barrage, he remarked. The YSRC leaders have mastered the art of counter-attack, fake propaganda and false rebuttal after committing crimes, Naidu said.