Former Andhra Pradesh Chief Secretary and BJP leader IYR Krishna Rao today alleged that religious organisations like the TTD had become centres of "political rehabilitation" for the leaders of the YSR Congress Party government, and asked the party what concrete steps it had taken to protect the Hindu community in the state.
Speaking to the media alongside other party leaders, the former CS claimed that although the Hindu religious organisations were under the control of the state government, it had done little to strengthen them, or to protect Hindu culture, and added, "The AP government has not done anything to protect Hindu culture in the state. It is, instead, taking decisions that will strengthen the non-Hindu communities of the state. I also want to ask the TTD what it does with the Sri Vani Trust funds. Though it claims that it has been using the funds to promote Hinduism, there is little evidence to back this claim. I wonder why it has not spent any funds on establishing temples in the Dalit colonies of the state."
He also expressed his anger over the "administrative inefficiency" of the government, and claimed that it was the BJP-led Centre that was chalking out the plans to ensure development in the state whereas the ruling party and the other leaders of the Opposition were trying to hinder these plans by constantly criticising the Centre.
Rao then said the state government was trying to gain publicity by distributing money to different sections of people to cover up the fact that it had taken loans worth lakhs of crores, and alleged that it had not even been able to "properly utilise" the funds sanctioned to AP by the Centre.
"The Jagan regime has repeatedly ignored the offer made by the Modi government to sanction a project to lay fresh railway lines in the state. Further, it had plainly expressed its inability to spend its share of the money for the development of its municipalities. Such administrative problems will be addressed once the BJP comes into power in our state," he added.
The allegation that Jagan is "strengthening non-Hindu religions" at the cost of Hinduism in AP is hardly a new one. In fact, many even alleged that the recent spate of
temple desecration incidents in the state had been orchestrated by the CM himself.
Despite the barrage of such charges that the saffron party often levels against the ruling party and the CM, controversial BJP leader and MP Subramanian Swamy has often come to the young leader's rescue. He has in the past
defended Jagan many times against the allegations made by other leaders of his party, that the CM pushes Christianity at the cost of Hinduism in the state.