The right-wing Hindu nationalist organisation Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) organised a huge public event in the name of ‘Haindava Sankharavam’ in Kesarapalli near Vijayawada on January 5, calling on Hindus to take a vow to “protect Hindu temples”. A nine-point declaration was also adopted at the event. This included demands such as legislative amendments to provide full autonomy to Hindu temples, firing non-Hindu employees working for non-profits administered by Hindu temples, and allowing Hindu religious celebrations and processions without restrictions.
The demand to “free” temples from government control is a recurring one among right-wing groups, with the claim that governments make money off of Hindu temples by diverting temple funds to other activities. However, most states have procedural safeguards against doing so, and there is little evidence that this is a prevalent practice.
Read: Jaggi Vasudev says ‘free Hindu temples’ — but how much are they under govt control?
Nearly three lakh people from different parts of Andhra Pradesh attended the event, according to VHP Andhra Pradesh state secretary and the event’s convener, Tanikella Satya Ravi Kumar. Over 150 Hindu religious leaders attended the event, including politically influential ones such as Chinna Jeeyar and Ganapathi Sachchidananda.
Speaking at the event, VHP Andhra Pradesh joint general secretary Parre Koteswara Rao alleged that there were several attacks on Hindus in the state in recent times. “Hindus are facing attacks from non-Hindus, police cases, and government restrictions. If Hindus lose patience, anything can happen.” He said that if ‘attacks’ by non-Hindus are not taken seriously, “Hindus will be possessed by deities. Then will the above three institutions (non-Hindus, police and government) be able to protect themselves from Hindus?” he asked.
VHP’s national-level joint general secretary Koteswara Sarma recalled the Ram Janmabhoomi movement and said, “Thirty-four years ago, the Hindu community had raised the slogan that if three temples (Ayodhya, Mathura and Varanasi) were not given, we would take 30,000 temples. This event is an inaugural attempt to free the temples across the country from the clutches of political parties and governments.”
He criticised the 1986 Challa Kondaiah Commission report adopted by the Andhra Pradesh government, whose major recommendations included the abolition of hereditary rights to priests, and whose findings said that priests and temple trust boards at the time were carrying out corrupt activities in temple administration. The Andhra Pradesh Charitable and Hindu Religious Institutions and Endowments Act of 1987 was drawn based on the Commission’s report.
“The Challa Kondaiah Commission has handed over the management of temples to the government. As a result, non-Hindus have become employed in temples,” he said.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which is part of the alliance government in Andhra Pradesh along with TDP and Jana Sena Party, has been demanding that the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD) Board employ only Hindus in Tirumala. The Board recently made a decision in this regard, which would affect at least around 44 known non-Hindu employees, many of whom work in posts unrelated to religion, such as drivers, attenders, nurses, sanitation workers etc.
The nine-point declaration adopted at the meeting made the following demands to the government – amend laws to provide full autonomy to Hindu temples; ensure that temple rituals are conducted with devotion and quality until the temples become autonomous; remove non-Hindu employees working in service organisations administered by Hindu temples; appoint only non-political, devout Hindus to temple trust boards; ensure that Hindu temples’ alienated properties are returned; ensure that Hindu temples’ income is used only to propagate Hindu religion etc. and not for government activities; stop protecting those who attack the Hindu community; stop imposing undue restrictions over celebration of festivals such as Vinayaka Chavithi, Dussehra and Hanuman Jayanthi; and stop imposing undue curbs on Shobha Yatras and other Hindu processions.
Processions such as the Shobha Yatra are often used by right-wing groups to propagate Hindu nationalism, and are frequently peppered with hate speeches.
VHP’s international president Alok Kumar and organising general secretary Milind Parande also attended the event. Also in attendance was Govind Dev Giri Maharaj, treasurer of the Shree Ram Janmabhoomi Tirtha Kshetra Nyas, which was formed to oversee the Ayodhya temple construction.
