Govt. more interested in revenue of temples than their issues: Ashok

Former Union Minister P. Ashok Gajapathi Raju visited the Sri Varaha Lakshmi Narasimha Swami temple at Simhachalam, right here on Wednesday and had darshan of the deity for the primary time after his reinstatement by the A.P. High Court as hereditary trustee of the temple and chairman of the MANSAS Trust.

Last 12 months, the federal government had issued a G.O. dismissing Mr. Ashok Gajapathi Raju as hereditary trustee of the temple and appointing Sanchaita Gajapathi Raju in his place.

Addressing the media later, Mr. Ashok Gajapathi Raju stated it was the fundamental duty of the Central and State governments to uphold the Constitution and defend ‘dharma’.

There have been 105 temples below the Vizianagaram ‘samsthanam’, and these had been established by the royal household together with the contributions of the devotees in these days, and therefore they didn’t belong to a single household, Mr. Ashok Gajapathi Raju opined.

He recalled the efforts of the Simhachalam temple administration in the previous to preserve pure sources corresponding to water and safety of ecology through the use of solar energy to satisfy the wants of the temple. The temple had obtained awards on the nationwide degree for vitality conservation, he stated.

Referring to temple funds and temple lands, he expressed the view that the federal government was interested in the revenue, however not in regards to the issues.

‘Culprits still at large’

“I was dismissed from three temples on the pretext that I failed to protect the idols. The stones at the ancient Ananta Padmanabha Swamy temple, at Padmanabham in Visakahaptnam, where the Pandavas were said to have stayed, had been removed. The idol of Lord Rama was damaged at Ramatheertham in Vizianagaram district. Have the culprits been arrested?” Mr. Ashok Gajapathi Raju questioned.

The laddu prasadam charge and the ghat highway ticket have been elevated to generate revenue, placing the frequent devotees to hardship, he stated, and recalled that the prasadam had been despatched to the cyclone victims of Srikakulam district in the previous as a noble gesture.

He alleged that 17% of the temple funds (₹49 lakh) was being misused by the State authorities to promote the Vahana Mitra scheme.

The former Union Minister additionally visited the ‘gosala’ being maintained by the temple administration and planted saplings there alongside along with his daughter Aditi Gajapathi Raju.