VOWS AND POLITICAL FALLOUT

Telangana state Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao’s expensive godly vows have enthused many, amused some and provoked quite a few in the state and beyond. But Rao is standing tall and continuing his trips to various temples with gold ornaments to fulfil what he says are vows he made for achieving Telangana statehood. Interestingly, no one took objection when he talked about it during the Telangana movement, as also at the polls and after winning the elections in 2014. The Congress, Telugu Desam and the BJP, who now find fault with him, didn’t even raise their eyebrows then. They are out now, daggers drawn. Rao maintained a studied silence amid all the barbs aimed at him over his latest offer of gold ornaments worth over `5.59 crore to the Lord Venkateswara temple in Tirumala. And, the CM went to the hill shrine in style, carrying with him two planeloads — of family members, partymen and officials. The money for this, sources close to Rao maintain, was drawn from the Endowment Common Good Fund, a part of the income that the government earns from temples and contributions of devotees. This money is generally used for renovation of small temples. After his trip to the Kuravi Veerabhadra Swamy temple to gift a gold moustache, what remains is an offering to Kanaka Durga of Vijayawada. The CM is bound to complete the pilgrimage soon. Jokes are also doing the rounds. “What happens if Deputy CM promises to take a planeload of people to Mecca in fulfilment of a vow, or a Christian leader takes a flight to Jerusalem or Vatican City? Where will this end,” wondered an official, pleading however that his name be not mentioned even in sleep!