The “unceremonious ” shifting of an ancient Sivalingam without any intimation to the officials concerned has triggered a furore with the main Opposition in the State —the YSRC — taking the lead in raising a hue and cry.
YSRC senior spokesperson and former Minister K. Parthasarathy on Friday staged a rasta roko at Prakasam Chowk in Gannavaram demanding action against those responsible for the shifting of the lingam which he termed “a gross violation of the Hindu Dharma and several laws of the land.”
The villagers believe that the Sivalingam manifested itself about 1,100 years ago on the dam of the present day 1,200-acre Brahmalingeswar tank between Kotagattu and Nuthulagattu that flank the water body after Brahmaiah and his wife Lingamma fought an entire stormy night to prevent breaching of the dam.
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A temple was built at the place by Naga Devaraju, who believed that he won a battle after worshipping the lingam, about 850 years ago. Though the five-foot Sivalingam is said to be one of the biggest in South India, not many devotees visited the temple because it was out of the way. In 1996, the people of the area led by villagers of Chikkavaram built a temple on the opposite side of the tank close to the main road and installed the Sivalingam there. It was installed by the Kanchi seer Jayendra Sarawati. Devotees made a beeline for the temple during Karthika Masam.
On November 25, however, the trustees of the temple decided to remove the Sivalingam from the temple at the height of the season.
“The Sivalingam was lifted crudely by a crane and put on top of the Kota Gattu where Naga Devaraju had built a fort. I was shocked to see the way the Sivalingam was shifted and installed in a small corrugated shed in a video sent to me by whatsapp,” Mr. Parthasarathy said.
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The original temple built by Naga Devaraju is in total ruins with a person using it as a temporary shelter.
The YSRC leader said a road was laid to top of the hill and about two acres area cleared and levelled at the top. Though changes were done on such a large scale, all line departments are feigning ignorance, he alleged. “While the villagers are alleging that Konda poramboku was being encroached, the MRO said it was reserve forest. If it is reserve forest, it is a bigger crime,” Mr. Parthasarathy said.