Hyderabad Police Order Removal of Ganesha Idol Styled as CM Revanth Reddy
The DCP of Hyderabad directs the removal of Lord Ganesha idol modeled after CM Revanth Reddy following an outrage among citizens; the organisers install a traditional idol in its place.
Hyderabad DCP Orders Removal of Ganesha Idol Styled After CM Revanth Reddy.
An idol of Lord Ganesha that was designed to resemble Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy caused outrage among people in Hyderabad and the police was promptly ordered to remove it. The iconic installation that contained a resemblance of the Chief Minister was removed a few hours after it was unveiled.
G. Chandra Mohan, the Hyderabad southwest Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) ordered the removal on a visit at a pandal in Bhoiguda, Habibnagar. He ordered the chairman of Fisheries Federation Mettu Sai Kumar, who organised the pandal, to substitute the idol with a classic portrayal of Ganesha. The organisers did this on time and put an idol of conventional size in its place.
The idol was designed to resemble the dress of CM Revanth Reddy white shirt, black trousers and a green shawl; this was based on an image of him taken when he was on padayatra. According to Sai Kumar, the theme, which was called Telangana Rising, was supposed to represent development and unity in his leadership.
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Nonetheless, the work of art did not pass unimpeded. BJP MLA Raja Singh protested vehemently stating that the depiction of a political leader in the form of a deity was likely to erode the religious feeling and erase demarcations in sacredness. He formally complained to the Hyderabad Police Commissioner C. V. Anand, saying that a blend of religious iconography and living political figures could not be tolerated.
This incidence highlights the sensitivity of political expression and culture, particularly at such religious festivals as Ganesh Chaturthi. Although this was supposed to celebrate the visions of the Chief Minister, the backlash acts as a reminder that the devotional settings are generally supposed to be independent of political representation.
Throughout the festival, the plush pandal in Bhoiguda has now a more traditional idol, which has brought back the old image and avoided a possible communal conflict. The immediate response by the government is an indication of trending towards veneration of spiritual feelings alongside concerns of the people.
