No other slogans than ‘Govind Govinda’ on Tirumala hills: Chandrababu Naidu promises cleansing of TTD

TIRUMALA: Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Nara Chandrababu Naidu has said that Tirumala must not be used for political statements and sloganeering and its sanctity must be protected at a cost.

Addressing a maiden press conference on Tirumala hills after the CM and his family had ‘darshan’ on Thursday morning, Chandrababu said that efforts would be made to assure devotees of peaceful stay and darshan on the seven hills.

“The sanctity of the holy temple town has been spoiled during the past five years. Have you ever heard of taking the deity to the doorsteps of the houses of the powerful? All those that have wilfully resorted to the blasphemy against the Lord were punished,” Naidu observed.

He said that drugs, alcohol, and non-vegetarian food were allowed on the hills, and the quality of the food on the hills deteriorated during the last five years. “The hills must reverberate with the sounds of ‘Govinda Govinda’ and not political slogans,” he said.

Naidu who objected to the erection of barriers and curtains around the Gayatri Guest house where he along with his family stayed on Wednesday night, said that he doesn't want officials to distance him from the people. “There will be no more barricades or cutting trees whenever I visit any place, the TTD officials are still in the hangover of their old habits,” he pointed out.

He said that he prayed to the Lord that all the Telugu people wherever they loved must prosper. “I am a father figure for both AP and Telangana. I prayed Lord Venkateswara to protect everyone including my family,” Chandrababu Naidu said.

He said that even though he doesn’t want to talk politics on the hills, he said that his priority would be to create wealth and spread the wealth among the poor. “Indians and Telugu are known for their technological prowess all over the world. I have started second-generation reforms in the country. It was a success. The then PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee started the Golden Quadrilateral based on our initiative in AP,” he said.