Two incidents involving the desecration of temples in Telangana have sparked outrage and concern.
In Shadnagar town of Rangareddy district, unidentified miscreants desecrated a temple in the Janampeta area on Friday, damaging the Shiva Lingam.
Local residents discovered the vandalism early in the morning and immediately informed the police.
The temple committee lodged a formal complaint at the Shadnagar police station. Authorities inspected the premises and are analyzing CCTV footage to identify the culprits.
In a separate incident, a fire broke out at the ancient Sri Amareswara Swamy temple in Ambatpalle village of Mahadevpur Mandal, Jayashankar Bhupalapalli district, on Thursday evening.
The blaze reportedly destroyed the idol of Lord Hanuman, leading to further unrest. The cause of the fire remains unknown.
BJP leaders have expressed concern over what they describe as a series of attacks on Hindu temples in the state.
The BJP Telangana unit took to social media, accusing the ruling Congress government of inaction and appeasement politics.
“No end to the horrendous attacks on Hindu deities under CONgress rule in Telangana. Sri Ram Bhakth Hanuman murthy in the ancient Amareswara Swamy temple at Ambatipalle was burnt down by unknown miscreants, and as usual, the Congress government is trying to cover up the story instead of investigating,” read a post from BJP Telangana’s official handle on X (formerly Twitter).
Vishnu Vardhan Reddy, vice-president of BJP’s Andhra Pradesh unit, also raised questions about the government’s response.
“The burning of the Hanuman idol raises serious concerns about the safety and security of religious sites. It’s alarming how Rahul Gandhi and other Congress leaders continue to ignore these incidents, showing no proper action or protection for Hindu temples. Why is the state police failing to address these ongoing attacks?”
The BJP has called for swift and strict action to prevent such incidents in the future, accusing the Congress-led state government of neglecting Hindu sentiments and failing to ensure the safety of religious sites.