Popular Vaishnavaite seer Sri Tridandi Srimannarayana Ramanuja Chinna Jeeyar Swamy has blamed it on lack of proper supervision on the temples which was resulting in periodical attacks on them, desecration of idols.
Jeeyar, who made a whirlwind tour of several temples across the state, had a darshan of Lord Venkateshwara in Tirumala on Friday. Speaking to media later, he said it was the responsibility of the governments of the day to protect the temples in the state.
Stating that the AP Endowments Department was in possession of 4.60 lakh acres of temple lands, but for reasons known to the government, thousands of acres of land had been encroached upon over the years.
“The successive governments had failed to discharge their duty of protecting the temples. Because of lack of proper supervision, these temples were subject to attacks by miscreants periodically,” Jeeyar Swamy said.
He said he had observed several temples and identified the issues concerning them.
“I submitted a representation to Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams trust board chairman Y V Subba Reddy making several suggestions on the maintenance of temples,” he said.
Stating that many temples in the state lacked proper development, Jeeyar swamy said the government should come forward to take up their upkeep.
“If temples are good, the people would also be good,” he said.