Police on Wednesday arrested a person from Thotapeta village, identified as Seelam Srinivas, in connection with the vandalism of a Shiva Lingam on the premises of the Draksharamam temple complex in Dr. BR Ambedkar Konaseema in Andhra Pradesh late Monday evening.
The lingam on the steps of the temple pond was found vandalized by devotees on Tuesday morning. The police registered the case according to § 298 and § 324 paragraph 4 of the BNS. CCTV footage installed near the temple showed a person moving suspiciously on a two-wheeler late on Monday night.
Konaseema District Superintendent of Police Rahul Meena said that Srinivas, a native of Thotapeta, was pursuing his B. Com in Draksharamam town and earns his livelihood by making tools and equipment like hammers.
According to the police, Srinivasu’s neighbor Kalaganda Suribabu, a priest, built a drain in front of his house, which allowed the water to drain in front of Srinivasu’s house. Angered by this, Srinivas damaged the drain, leading to frequent arguments between the two.
“Srinivas saw Mr. Suribaba performing poojas to the Lingams in the temple pond. With the intention of maligning the reputation of the priest, Srinivas vandalized the Lingam,” said Mr. Rahul Meena, adding that Srinivas allegedly damaged the Lingam with a hammer late on Monday night.
The accused claims to be a devotee of Lord Shiva and has tattoos of Shiva Lingam, Lord Vishnu and ‘Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya’ on his shoulder, police said.
Srinivas had earlier allegedly damaged the staircase and compound wall of the lawyer’s house as he failed to resolve the land dispute despite charging the lawyer ₹3,000, the SP said.
Before arresting Srinivas, five teams of police personnel went through footage collected from 50 CCTV cameras.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, who is abroad on a personal visit, called Endowments Minister Anam Ramnarayana Reddy late on Tuesday evening to inquire about the incident.
Mr. Ramnarayana Reddy informed the Chief Minister that a new Shiva Lingam has been consecrated in place of the vandalized one.
Mr. Ramnarayana Reddy asked the officials to take steps to increase security in the temple precincts to avoid such incidents.
Published – 31 Dec 2025 19:57 IST
