Hyderabad: A video showing some women helping wash the feet of Miss World contestants at Ramappa temple Thursday sparked controversy with opposition BRS and BJP flaying the act, terming it an insult to Telangana women.
Responding to the criticism, the state government in a post on ‘X’ said “This is a tradition we follow in accordance with the dictum ‘Atithi Devo Bhava’ by which we offer our international guests the highest honour”.
The contestants, dressed in sarees, visited the historical Ramappa Temple, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, as part of their heritage tour in the state Wednesday.
After they reached the site, some women were seen in the video pouring water on the feet of the contestants, who were seated in a row, to wash their feet. One woman was seen wiping the feet of a contestant with a towel and the video went viral.
The “appalling” incident, where local Dalit, tribal, and economically disadvantaged women were “forced to wash and wipe” the feet of foreign beauty pageant participants, has unleashed a wave of outrage across Telangana, striking a devastating blow to the state’s cherished self-respect, BRS said in a press release.
“Congress CM has officially lost his mind,” BRS Working President KT Rama Rao said, reposting the video on his ‘X’ handle.
Congress CM has officially lost his mind https://t.co/oPXT15IcW5
— KTR (@KTRBRS) May 15, 2025
Telangana BJP chief and Union minister G Kishan Reddy in a post on ‘X’ alleged that Congress party’s century-old legacy of making Indians kneel before foreigners to appease their high command is evident and Chief Minister Revanth Reddy, in his desperate bid to impress Delhi bosses, has trampled on the dignity and self-respect of Indian women.
“The Congress national leadership of Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi should tender an unconditional apology to Telangana women for blasphemy and for surrendering the dignity, culture and self-respect of our NariShakti,” he further said in the post.
Former Minister and BRS legislator Sabitha Indra Reddy, in a post on ‘X’ described it as a grave insult to Telangana’s daughters on the land that gave birth to heroic women like Rudramadevi, Sammakka, and Saralakka.
“The Congress government has stripped the honour of the daughters of the state. This incident has not only shamed Telangana but has also tarnished the dignity of Indian women before the world,” she hit out at the state government.
The Miss World grand finale is set to be held here May 31. During their stay, the contestants — over 100 in number — have been touring several key tourist attractions across the state.
PTI
