The city will be missing the hungama around the tallest Ganesha idol, a cynosure of all eyes during the festivity in the last three consecutive years.
The installation of idol has been withdrawn this year owing to the unsolicited political interventions that triggered a row in the organising committee last year.
The Dundi Ganesh Seva Samiti (DGSS) was first formed in 2015 to establish AP’s tallest idol at the Ghantasala Govt. Music and Dance College in the city. It was a 63-foot idol and became the tallest plaster of Paris idol in the new State.
The next two years too devotees had the opportunity to offer prayers at the 72-foot clay idol that was colourful and attractive.
Differences among the organising committee members surfaced in 2016 when the men of local politicians intervened seeking partnership in the deed and publicity for their leader.
Also, the students and the faculty of the college strongly disapproved the misuse of their college land for religious events not permitted as per the rulebook.
In 2017 the idol was placed in the Gymkhana Grounds but political controversies mired the organising committee with a section of it alleging misuse of funds by another section. The making of the idol was also stopped for a brief period.
“The issue has gone out of our hands due to political interventions last year. This year as elections are ahead we expect the political clout to create more issues. To avoid that we have decided not to continue,” a founding member of the DGSS said.