Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister and Janasena party chief Pawan Kalyan arrived at Tirumala temple on Thursday accompanied by his daughters. The deputy CM is on a three-day visit to the temple as part of his 11-day penance to atone for the alleged sins committed by the previous YSRCP regime at Tirumala.
But, what caught everyone's eye was how Kalyan's youngest daughter, Polina Anjani Konidela signed a faith declaration at Tirumala temple. In the declaration, Polina said she had faith in Lord Venkateswara. Since Polina is a minor, Kalyan too signed the papers. The Janasena Party took to Twitter to share the video of Polina signing the declaration forms given by the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) officials.
Hon'ble Deputy Chief Minister, Sri @PawanKalyan's younger daughter, Polena Anjani Konidela, has given a declaration for darshan of Tirumala Sri Venkateswara Swamy. She signed the declaration forms given by TTD (Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams) officials. Since Polena Anjani is a… pic.twitter.com/FLOQv8CpHB
— JanaSena Party (@JanaSenaParty) October 2, 2024
Polina had to sign the faith declaration as she is a Christian and Kalyan's daughter from his third wife Anna Lezhneva, a practising Christian. She and her brother Mark Shankar Pawanovich are Overseas Citizens of India. As per TTD's norms, a non-Hindu wishing to seek darshan of Lord Venkateswara at Tirumala must submit a signed affidavit, affirming their faith, respect, and devotion towards the deity. He or she should also promise to adhere to the temple's rules and rituals.
Also read: Tirupati laddu row: Day after SC rebuked Andhra CM Naidu, his deputy Pawan Kalyan reacts
However, the TTD had recently removed the boards set up to inform the non-Hindus about the norm just ahead of former chief minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy's visit to the temple after the Laddu row broke out. However, Reddy, a Christian, later called off his visit to the temple citing security reasons. He later replied to questions regarding his faith, stating though he read the Bible at home, his religion was humanity.
Kalyan met Lezhneva on the sets of his movie 'Teen Maar' in 2011. They married in 2013 after two years of dating. Post his marriage to Lezhneva, questions were raised about Kalyan's faith with many questioning whether or not he read or kept the Bible at home.
