Using religion for political gains

The Hindu

3 hours ago

For the last four decades, political narratives in Andhra Pradesh have always hinged on caste equations. Even if we look at the composition of the current National Democratic Alliance (NDA), the two major parties — the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and the Jana Sena Party (JSP) — are largely represented by two major castes in Andhra Pradesh — the Kammas and the Kapus. Similarly, the Congress and YSR Congress Party are dominated by the Reddy community.
This was not always the case. Before the 1980s, the key players in Andhra Pradesh were the Congress and Left parties, and their narratives were largely based on social issues. Though there were underlying currents of caste-based politics, these did not surface often. The narrative of caste-based politics started with the entry of N.T. Rama Rao into politics in 1982. Rao, the founder of the TDP, advocated for Telugu pride, yet his party was often termed a 'Kamma party'.
Ever since the composite State of Andhra Pradesh was bifurcated in 2014, and Telangana was formed, the politics in the residual State of Andhra Pradesh has changed and has assumed religious overtones. While this was noticeable during the previous YSRCP government headed by Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, it has become all the more evident during the current NDA regime, which came to power in 2024. Political narratives have been based largely on a number of issues revolving around places of worship and have caused quite a stir in the State.
The most prominent of these is the controversy surrounding the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD). It broke out in September 2024 when Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu alleged that the laddu prasadam was being made with adulterated ghee containing animal fat. He claimed that the contract for the supply of sub-standard ghee had been given to a firm by the earlier YSRCP government.
The accusation caused political and religious outrage across the country. Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan, who is the JSP chief, claimed that adding adulterated ghee was a concerted move to attack Sanatana Dharma. The parties and allies of the NDA left no stone unturned in attacking Mr. Jagan Reddy and his party. They went to the extent of saying that the practice of hiring staff from other faiths had led to 'sacrilege' of the TTD. A Special Investigation Team was constituted to probe this matter and the issue finally reached the Supreme Court.
When the controversy died down after a couple of months, Mr. Reddy turned the tables on the NDA following a stampede at the Vaikunta Ekadasi festival at the TTD temple in Tirupati. The incident, which took place on January 8, claimed six lives. Mr. Jagan Reddy and his party alleged negligence, and held the NDA responsible for it.
Before this incident too could die down, TTD's former chairman, former MLA Bhumana
Karunakar Reddy, alleged that over 170 cows had died in a month at the devasthanams goshala (cow shed) and said that funds for the goshala were being misused by the present TTD board and officials. This led to tense moments in the temple town. Both the YSRCP and the NDA locked horns over the issue. All the political parties in the State, including the Left parties, took turns to add to the discourse. The issue reached a feverish pitch and dominated the political narrative in the State.
However, this is not the case only with the present NDA regime although it seems more prominent now. The desecration of Lord Rama's idol at the 12th century Ramatheertham yemple in Vizianagaram district in December 2020 gained considerable political traction. The YSRCP was in power then. All the Opposition parties, including the TDP, the JSP, and the BJP, raised their pitch and made this an election issue in the 2024 general elections. In the same year, a century-old wooden chariot of the Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy temple, located in Sakhinetipalli Mandal in East Godavari district, was set on fire by miscreants. The Opposition parties alleged that people from other faiths had set fire to the chariot. The suspect in the case, who hails from a minority community, was killed in a road accident.
Senior politicians and political analysts say that this appears to be a new trend in the State. With religious issues taking centre stage, core issues are taking a backseat.
[e-mail]