The police on Wednesday arrested a person from Thotapeta village, identified as Seelam Srinivas, in connection with the vandalisation of a Shiva Lingam on the premises of Draksharamam temple complex in Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Konaseema district of Andhra Pradesh late on Monday night.
The Lingam on the stairs of the temple pond was found vandalised on Tuesday morning by devotees. The police registered a case under Sections 298 and 324 (4) of BNS. The footage of the CCTV installed near the temple showed a person moving suspiciously on a two-wheeler on late Monday night.
Konaseema District Superintendent of Police Rahul Meena said Srinivas, a native of Thotapeta, pursued his B. Com in Draksharamam town and is earning his liveihood by making tools and equipment like hammers.
According to police, Srinivas’s neighbour Kalaganda Suribabu, a priest, constructed a drain outside his house, allowing the water to flow in front of Srinivasu’s house. Angered over this, Srinivas damaged the drain, which led to frequent arguments between the two.
“Srinivas saw Mr. Suribabu performing poojas to the Lingam at the temple pond. With an intention to damage the priest’s reputation, Srinivas vandalised the Lingam,” Mr. Rahul Meena said, 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 he has tattoos of a Shiva Lingam, Lord Vishnu and ‘Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya’ on his shoulder, the police said.
Earlier, Srinivas allegedly damaged the stairs and the compound wall of the lawyer’s house as the latter, despite charging ₹3,000, failed to solve a land dispute for him, the SP said.
Five teams of police personnel went through the footage gathered from 50 CCTV cameras before arresting Srinivas.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, who is abroad on a personal visit, called Endowments Minister Anam Ramnarayana Reddy late Tuesday night to enquire about the incident.
Mr. Ramnarayana Reddy informed the Chief Minister that a new Shiva Lingam was consecrated in place of the vandalised one.
Mr. Ramnarayana Reddy asked the officials to take steps to increase security in the temple precincts to avert such incidents.
Published – December 31, 2025 07:57 pm IST
