Two persons from Karnataka suffered serious injuries, about five shops were damaged and some clothes and other items were set on fire following a clash between devotees belonging to Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka near Bhramarambha Mallikarjuna Swamy temple, at Srisailam, on Wednesday night. The local kiosk owners, in turn, allegedly damaged two wheelers of the devotees from Karnataka.
According to sources, a minor argument between a devotee from Karnataka and a temporary tea kiosk owner led to a massive clash between the two groups. The enraged Kannada devotees allegedly went on a rampage and set fire to some articles from a couple of shops, and in retaliation, the locals, including shop owners, beat up the group of persons who attacked the shops and damaged some of their vehicles.
Temple Executive Officer S. Lavanna and other police officials rushed the injured to Sunnipenta Government Hospital for first aid and later shifted them to GGH, Kurnool. District Collector P. Koteswara Rao consoled the injured Kannada devotees at the hospital.
