NEW DELHI: Former Andhra Pradesh chief minister and YSRCP chief Jagan Mohan Reddy on Friday hit out at CM Chandrababu Naidu and said “demons are ruling” the state as he cancelled his visit to Tirumala temple. He said he had “never seen political parties creating hurdles even to visit a temple”.
Reddy cancelled his scheduled visit to Tirumala temple on September 28 amid the adulterated Tirupati laddus row over security concerns and demand for ‘declaration of faith’.
Claiming that Reddy was a believer of Christianity, TDP had demanded that Jagan Reddy must declare his faith before the temple visit.
TDP’s allies BJP and Jana Sena also insisted that Reddy declare his faith before entering the Sri Venkateswara temple.
Rule 136 of the temple board’s guidelines states that only Hindus are allowed to go for darshan. Non-Hindus who wish to have darshan of Lord Venkateswara will have to inform the TTD Board about their religion and have to declare the same in a form as per their conscience only as mentioned in Rule 137.
Amid the heat, Reddy finally cancelled his visit which was meant to atone for the “sin” allegedly committed by CM Naidu who claimed that animal fat was used in the laddus, part of temple prasadam.
“Many questions have been raised about my caste. I read the Bible at home, and I respect and follow Hinduism, Islam, and Sikhism. I belong to the community of humanity. What does the Constitution say? If a person equivalent to the chief minister is not allowed into the temple, I question how Dalits will be treated,” he said.
This is not the first time Reddy’s religion has become a flashpoint in Andhra Pradesh politics. His opponents have time and again used his Christian faith to portray him as ‘anti-Hindu’. This is also not the first time Reddy has openly disclosed that he follows Christianity and reads the Bible.
In 2019, after a glorious victory in the Lok Sabha elections, as he was asked about Congress and his exit and if he felt vindicated after the results, he said, “I pray and read my Bible. It is for God to decide.”
During his whole tenure as chief minister, he was under constant attack by the opposition as they blamed him for the desecration of temples in Andhra Pradesh and conversions.
He was also attacked for several decisions for the Christian community in the state. The Reddy government hiked financial aid to Christian pilgrims visiting Jerusalem in Israel and other Biblical places. The state-sponsored tour period of the Biblical places was also enhanced from eight to 10 days.
In August 2019, Reddy’s trip to Jerusalem which was “purely personal and the expenditure shall be borne by the dignitary” was also criticised by the opposition after the Andhra Pradesh government spent Rs 22.5 lakh on it. His government, however, dismissed the charges stating the cost was towards security arrangements.
During this time, Naidu’s party, which had till now stayed away from communal remarks, also started targeting the Reddy government over temple vandalism incidents and for pushing English medium school education as a “ploy to spread Christianity” in the state.
Amid huge debate over his religious faith, Reddy’s uncle YV Subba Reddy also took over as the 50th chairman of Tirumala trust board in June, 2019.
Jagan Reddy, who has visited the hill shrine several times, has always found himself in the middle of the “declare your faith” campaign.
In September 2020, when as CM he visited Tirupati temple, TDP and BJP renewed their demand that he should sign the declaration.
Adding to the fuel, the temple trust chairman had stated at that time that the declaration was not needed for the temple entry of the non-Hindus.
Now in 2024, just months after the tables were turned in favor of Chandrababu Naidu and Reddy lost power in Andhra Pradesh, the new CM has attacked the Reddy government by alleging that it allowed the use of animal fat in Tirupati laddus and hurt the sentiments of Hindus across the country.
And once again, the “declare your faith” attack has come back to haunt Reddy.