“ఎక్కడో దూరాన కూర్చున్నావు..ఇక్కడి మా తలరాతలు రాస్తున్నావు /చిత్రమైన గారడి చేస్తున్నావు..తమాష చూస్తున్నావు … సామీ”( Seated afar, You write our destiny here below/Watching the fun, You put on a magical puppet show)-Lines from classic song in the film Devudamma(1973)..
The 1973 classic song portrayed God as a distant observer, pulling the strings of human destiny from above.
Back then, God was the director or that is what the lyricist made us believe.
In today's Andhra Pradesh politics, however, the roles have flipped. God isn't pulling the strings anymore; He’s being used as the string, a handy prop in a political circus where leaders are brazenly using His photos to settle scores.
The recent chaos in the Legislative Council over the Tirupati Laddu mess is a perfect example.
What should have been a serious talk about contamination of God’s prasadam turned into a schoolyard brawl.
By parading pictures of Lord Venkateswara through the hall, while allegedly wearing shoes, politicians turned a sacred icon into a "punching bag." It seemed the Deity was willingly caught himself amidst floor protests and dodging flying slippers.
The timing of this "Sacrilege accusations" is suspiciously perfect.
The outrage exploded exactly when the opposition members tried to talk about Indapur Dairy and its links to Heritage Foods (the CM’s family business).
Suddenly, the conversation shifted from "where did the ghee come from?" to "who wore shoes while carrying the photo?" It’s a classic magic trick: look at the slippers on the floor, but please ignore the balance sheets of the dairy and the conspirators behind the alleged contamination of the Tirupati Laddu.
This isn't about deep faith; it’s about political insecurity. The government successfully turned a boring corporate audit, the debate into the controversy into a holy war.
By screaming "Desecration!", they managed to hide uncomfortable questions about business reputations and supply-chain contracts behind a wall of religious anger.
It’s a case of “Why talk about grease and ghee when you can talk about gods and ghosts, and saints and sinners”?
Instead of catching the people who actually tainted the Prasadam, the state’s political leaders are stuck in a game of "Whataboutism."
While the government shouts "Blasphemy!", the opposition digs up old videos of the Chief Minister wearing slippers during a prayer.
It’s a race to see who is less holy. The average person is left wondering: is the temple’s sanctity being protected, or is a corporate contract being shielded?
Using God to score points in a political fight is playing with fire. It risks stirring up a communal frenzy that could easily spin out of control.
When faith is reduced to a political tool, the truth gets buried under a mountain of fake outrage.
To update that old song: it’s not God pulling our strings anymore, it’s the politicians. And God? He’s just a silent prop forced to watch the "fun" from the front row of a legislative fight.
