In yet another incident of temple attack in the Jagan Mohan Reddy ruled Andhra Pradesh, an idol of Lord Vinayagar was found vandalized at a temple in Eti Gairampeta village in Golugonda mandal in Vishakapatnam district. The hands of Lord Ganesh were found cut off and lying on the floor inside the sanctum sanctorum.
This is one of the many temple attacks to come to light in the past few days.
#BREAKING: Another idol desecrated in #AndhraPradesh! This time, miscreants cut off hands of Lord Ganesh inside a temple in Eti Gairampeta village, Golugonda mandal, #Visakhapatnam dt. CM @ysjagan had recently compared these #templeattacks to political guerrilla warfare. pic.twitter.com/5n2GNUrwIP
— krishnamurthy (@krishna0302) January 6, 2021
Earlier, on December 29, locals visiting the 400 year-old Kodanda Rama Temple on the Bodi Konda hill were shocked to find a statue of Lord Ram beheaded.
Priests of the Vigneshwara temple in Sriramnagar in Rajahmundry found the two arms of the vigraha of Lord Subrahmanya severed when they come to open the temple on January 1.
In another incident, miscreants damaged the feet of the deity Komalamma at the Komalamma Temple near Vantlamamidi near Paderu, in Vishakhapatnam district. The temple is adjacent to the famous Modakondamma temple. Devotees who went there on Friday morning to have darshan of Komalamma’s padalu (feet) on the occasion of the New Year were shocked to find the feet damaged.
Unidentified people desecrated the idol of Goddess Sita at a temple situated in the Pandit Nehru Bus Station, which was reported on January 3.
Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy in his defence has alleged that these attacks on temples are an act of conspiracy by political opponents to defame and brand it “anti-Hindu”. He also called likened these attacks to “guerrilla warfare tactics” by political opponents. On Monday (4 January), he gave an explanation to his theory that all attacks on Hindu temples occur only when some prestigious welfare programmes.
As per data released by the Andhra Pradesh DGP, about 228 cases of attacks on temples were registered in 2020. The number was 305 in 2019, 267 in 2018, 318 in 2017, 332 in 2016 and 290 in 2015.