Kuda Land Auction Row Takes Political Turn with BJP Ritual at Bhadrakali Temple

Warangal: The controversy over the recent auction of Kakatiya Urban Development Authority (Kuda) lands took a political turn on Saturday, with the BJP organising a “Samprokshanam” ritual at the Bhadrakali Temple in Warangal.

The party alleged that political activities by Congress and BRS leaders at the temple had hurt devotees’ sentiments. The issue began after BRS leaders, including former Kuda chairman Marri Yadav Reddy, alleged irregularities in the land auction. Yadav Reddy tried to visit the temple after a ritual bath and take an oath before the deity over the allegations, but was stopped and detained by police near the premises.

Congress leaders rejected the allegations, stating that the auction process was conducted transparently. DCC president and Kuda chairman Inagala Venkat Ram Reddy also visited the temple and offered prayers, reiterating that there were no irregularities.

Accusing both parties of using the temple for political purposes, BJP leaders conducted the ritual under the party’s Warangal district unit. They said such actions had affected the sanctity of the temple. BJP Warangal district president Ganta Ravi Kumar said temples should not be used for political confrontation, particularly the Bhadrakali temple, which attracts devotees from across the country and abroad. As part of the programme, BJP leaders sprinkled turmeric water and water brought from the Ganga and Godavari rivers around the temple premises as part of the ritual.

The BJP demanded that Congress and BRS leaders apologise to devotees for bringing political disputes into religious spaces. The party also criticised both the previous BRS government and the present Congress administration, alleging lack of development in Warangal. In a related development, BJP leader Rao Padma was placed under house arrest by police ahead of the programme.