Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) leader Girish Bharadwaj has filed a complaint with the Superintendent of Mysuru Police alleging negligence of duty by the Deputy Commissioner of the district and the Tahsildar of Nanjangudu during the September 8 demolition of Mahadevamma temple. In the complaint filed on Thursday, September 16, he has requested the SP to register a criminal case against both the DC and Tahsildar.
The VHP leader has taken to Twitter to inform about the same. He also shared a copy of the letter written by him to the SP of Mysuru.
I have written to SP Mysuru to register a Criminal Complaint against Deputy Commissioner Mysuru and Tahsildar , Nanjanagudu for hurting Religious Sentiments of Hindus and interpreting the Hon. Supreme Court Order in wrong way. @DgpKarnataka @SPmysuru pic.twitter.com/7UeOHUyUJV
— Girish Bharadwaj (@Girishvhp) September 16, 2021
In his letter to the Mysuru SP, the VHP leader has accused the duo of hurting the religious sentiments of the Hindus by incorrectly reading the Supreme Court order leading to the demolition of the 200-year-old Mahadevamma temple at Uchagani of Nanjangudu Taluk on September 8.
“Mahadevamma Temple which was razed by the authorities had a history of over 500 years. The idol of the deity was consecrated as per Hindu rituals (Prana Pratishtapana) and puja was offered daily to the idol. It is a matter of great concern that the Tahsildar gave scant regard to sentiments of localities and got it demolished in the wee hours of the morning, surreptitiously to avoid any backlash or opposition from the devotees and localities” the letter, written to the SP stated.
The letter went on to mention and quote the Supreme Court order, claiming that the demolition had been done in violation of it.
“Supreme Court order regarding the illegal religious structure is very clear: If religious structures are already on public places and constructed before 29 September 2009, the government has to frame policy and decide case to case about removal/ relocation/ regularization of such structure,” the letter by the VHP leader to the Mysuru SP quoted the SC order.
According to the letter, the Deputy Commissioner of Mysuru ignored the Tahsildar of Nanjangudu’s suggestions in 2011 to regularise Mahadevamma and Kalabhairaveshwara Temple at Uchagani, claiming that the temple was 200 years old. The Deputy Commissioner of Mysuru, ignoring the report, asked the Tahsildar to demolish Mahadevamma Temple in accordance with the Chief Secretary’s circular, stated the letter.
“In 2011, the then Tahsildar of Nanjangudu had recommended regularizing Mahadevamma and Kalabhairaveshwara Temple at Uchagani quoting that the temple was 200 years old. The Deputy Commissioner, Mysuru ignoring the report has directed Tahsildar to demolish Mahadevamma Temple following the Chief Secretary’s circular” the letter read.
The letter continued by stating that the temple was 40 feet from the road and did not block development and that the Tahsildar could have held meetings with devotees and locals to reach a decision. The move was described as “gross negligence” by the Tahsildar, for which he should face stern legal action.
“The Tahsildar has no right to raze religious structures of Hindus on the grounds of encroachment clearance,” the letter added.
“The Tahsildar, Nanjangudu has conspired to demolish Mahadevamma Temple, without even shifting the Murtis which was consecrated with Prana Prathishta, Tahsildar has intentionally demolished the temple with Brahma Kalasha and Vigrahas,” Girish Bharadwaj stated adding that the move had hurt his religious sentiments guaranteed by the Constitution of India.
He urged the SP to book the DC, Tahsildar, and everyone who supervised the demolition of the temple for hurting the religious sentiments and dereliction of duty.
Members of Hindu outfit protest against Mysuru temple demolition
Meanwhile, hundreds of members of the Hindu organisation Hindu Jagarana Vedike, assembled in front of the Kote Anjaneyaswamy temple and took part in a massive march against the district administration and the government in Mysuru on Thursday, condemning the demolition of the Hindu temple.
Giving a 10-day ultimatum to the state government, the outfit’s convener said that CM Basavaraj Bommai should take responsibility for safeguarding the Hindu temples.
