Forcing Andhra Pradesh ex-chief minister Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy to drop his planned visit to Tirumala temple following demands from his political rivals for declaration of faith, the latter said on Friday that humanity was his religion.
"Humanity is my religion. If you want to have a declaration on that please go ahead and have it as mine," he told a news conference while announcing that he is postponing his visit to Tirumala temple as he does not want to allow Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu to divert the issue as he was exposed with his lies on adulteration of laddu prasadam.
Questioning the silence of the BJP, the YSR Congress Party chief said if the BJP was sincere as the representatives of Hindutva values, it should have publicly reprimanded Chandrababu Naidu and sent him to jail for bringing down the reputation of Lord Venkateswara Swamy and prasadam for political gains by spreading lies.
I tell those people who want to know my religion. everybody in Andhra Pradesh knows who I am. everybody in this country knows who I am and who my father is. everybody also knows how many times I have been to Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam before and after becoming the chief minister," he said.
Remembering that he was accompanying the Prime Minister, the President and the Chief Justice of India to the temple and offering clothes to Lord Venkateswara on Brahmotsavam for five years in succession, he would ask why no one then asked him about his faith.
If someone were to ask what my religion is, I repeat to everybody. Between the four walls of my house, I read the Bible. When I go out of the house, I am a Hindu, I am a Muslim and I am also a Sikh. I practice their religions. I respect their religions," he said.
Reading out the preamble of the Constitution of India, the YSRCP leader said all of them seriously must start thinking where they stood on secularism.
"A man going to a temple has to reveal his faith before he is allowed entry into the temple. What kind of secularism is this? What kind of secular nation are we living in?" he asked.
He also questioned, "If a former chief minister and one who visited Tirumala not once but 10 times before is being given these kinds of notices for political reasons, barring him from entering temples what about the poor, what about Dalits? Can they enter these temples? What kind of message we are sending? What is BJP doing? Is this what they stand for?" Jagan Mohan Reddy asked while displaying notices served on YSRCP leaders and cadres.
slam the BJP for letting a person like Chandrababu Naidu roam free who is misusing power, bringing down the reputation of the temple and prasadam and who lies to gain political mileage.
"Because he is a part of NDA, is he at liberty to spread these kinds of lies? How can BJP support such a person instead of sending him to jail," he asked.
"Why is the BJP sitting silent? The worst thing is BJP has joined the party bandwagon. BJP leaders from Hyderabad have come down to Tirupati. They are trying to cover up Naidu's crime and deviate the issue from laddu to my declaration, he said".
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