SACRED TEMPLE LAND SWAPPED FOR FIVE-STAR HOTEL

Holy land up for grab

■ Aren’t both the political parties; TDP and YSRCP guilty?

TIME LINE

■ In November 2021 the then YSRCP government, allotted 20 acres of land to the Oberoi Group for a hotel.

■ TTD board passed a resolution in November 2024 demanding the return of the land. . By March 2025, the state government agreed to return the northern side land to the TTD trust, but in a swap, land on the south side was allocated to the tourism department for the hotel.

■ Both parties criticise each other but the fact of the matter is both have let out land for commercial purpose.

The sacred hills of Tirumala, home to the revered Sri Venkateswara Temple, are at the heart of a heated political storm as allegations of a land transfer conspiracy have sparked a war of words between Andhra Pradesh’s ruling Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and the opposition YSR Congress Party (YSRCP). The controversy centres on the transfer of temple land to the state’s tourism department, which has been allocated for a five-star hotel, raising concerns among devotees about the sanctity of the temple.

The Sri Venkateswara Temple, dedicated to Lord Vishnu and one of the world’s richest and most visited pilgrimage sites, is considered the spiritual heartbeat of millions. However, the decision to transfer 20 acres of temple land to the Oberoi Group for a luxury hotel has ignited protests and accusations of betrayal. The issue traces back to November 2021, during the YSRCP government, when 20 acres of land were allotted to the Oberoi Group for a hotel at Alipiri, the starting point of the sacred pilgrimage to Tirumala. This decision triggered protests from devotees, who objected to a hotel serving non-vegetarian food in such a holy area.

In May 2024, after the TDP, led by Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, came to power, the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) board passed a resolution in November 2024 demanding the return of the land. Naidu, during a visit to Tirupati, assured devotees that the sanctity of the hills would be preserved. By March 2025, the state government agreed to return the northern side land to the TTD trust, but in a swap, land on the south side was allocated to the tourism department for the hotel. The TTD board approved this exchange, but it has now become the focal point of fresh allegations.

YSRCP leaders who were former members of the TTD accused Chief Minister Naidu of orchestrating a conspiracy to surrender sacred temple land to private interests. They claim the swapped land, valued at an estimated Rs 1,500 crore, was exchanged for lower-value land, resulting in a loss of over Rs 1,000 crore to the temple trust. They argue that temple land meant for charitable purposes like the Aravind Eye Hospital or Tata Cancer Hospital should not be used for commercial ventures like a five-star hotel serving non-vegetarian food. “This is a calculated betrayal,” they stated, alleging that the land valuation was deliberately omitted from official documents.

The TDP has hit back, dismissing the accusations as “false propaganda” by the YSRCP. TDP leaders assert that the initial land allotment at Alipiri was made under the YSRCP regime in 2021, and the current government is correcting that mistake. They claim the swapped land on the south side is farther from the temple’s sacred core, unlike the Alipiri site, which holds immense spiritual significance as the starting point of the pilgrimage. A TDP spokesperson reiterated that the state government acted on the demands of Hindu organizations to protect Tirumala’s sanctity.

A YSRCP spokesperson emphasized that the land allocated under their regime was not TTD-owned and was located 4.5 km from the temple in rural limits, whereas the current allocation is TTD land, just 2.5 km from the temple in urban limits. Amid the political slugfest, devotees are expressing anguish over the politicization of their sacred site. Religious activists called the situation “heartbreaking highlighting several previous judicial and expert recommendations that temples should be administered by non-political, spiritually oriented individuals rather than state-appointed politicians. As devotees worldwide watch with bated breath, the Tirumala land dispute underscores a broader issue: the administration of sacred sites by politically appointed boards. With millions visiting Tirumala to seek Lord Venkateswara’s blessings, the call to keep politics out of pilgrimage sites grows louder. For now, the faithful hope their spiritual haven will remain untainted by the shadow of political manoeuvring.