Warangal:
The demolition of an 800-year-old Kakatiya-era Shiva temple in Telangana’s Warangal district has sparked widespread outrage, prompting the Union Ministry of Culture and historians to demand accountability.
Located at Ashok Nagar in Khanapur Mandal, the temple was allegedly bulldozed to clear land for a government Integrated School.
Dating back to the 13th-century reign of Kakatiya ruler Ganapatideva, the temple site housed a rare seven-line Telugu inscription from February 1231 AD addressing the king as “Maharaja” and “Rajadhirajulu.”
Documented by the Heritage Department in 1965, the structure stood within the historic “Kota Katta” mud fort region, known for its ancient fortifications. Experts argue the heritage site could have easily been preserved or relocated.
Following this, a complaint was filed before the National Monuments Authority by Telangana rights lawyer Rama Rao Immaneni, the Union Ministry of Culture and the Archaeology Department registered a case. Legal action is being sought under Section 30 of the Telangana Heritage Act against officials who permitted the work without mandatory approvals from the Archaeology and Endowments Departments. The complaint also accused the state government of failing to form a mandatory Heritage Conservation Committee.
Responding to the backlash, the Warangal District Collector’s office issued a clarification following a joint inspection on May 6. The administration denied deliberate demolition, claiming only “remnants of an old dilapidated structure” were found while clearing dense bushes on the 30-acre site. Officials noted the structure was not officially recorded as a protected monument.
However, to pacify public anger, Warangal Collector Dr. Satya Sharada and Narsampet MLA Donthi Madhava Reddy visited the site and promised to fully reconstruct the temple at the same location. The restoration will be done in consultation with historians, Stapathis (traditional architects), and the Archaeology Department, alongside initiating steps to formally protect the site.