Hyderabad: Tirumala Tirupati Devsthanam (TTD), the managing body of one of India’s richest temple — Sri Venkateshwara temple atop Tirumala hills — has denied the allegation of its former chief priest that some of its most ancient and valuable gems and jewels were missing.
TTD Chief Executive Officer Anil Kumar Singhal told a news conference in Tirumala today that all the gems and jewels of the temple were safe. “A very clean record of jewels was being maintained from 1952”, he said rejecting the allegations of former Chief Priest Ramanna Deekshitulu that some of the jewels were missing and there were irregularities in the governing of the temple affairs by the TTD.
Deekshitulu’s allegations, which came amid the row over his retirement on attaining the age of 65 years, has sparked off a storm pitting the TTD and the state government against the opposition parties.
On Deekshitulu’s allegation that a pink diamond was broken, Anil Kumar Singhal said that it was not a pink diamond but a ruby which had broken during a Garud Seva procession when some devotees threw metal coins at the deity.
Quoting the report of Justice M Jagannadha Rao Committee into the incident he said when the ruby fell down and broke, it was Deekshitulu who had noticed it and during the search the pieces were recovered. Singhal showed the pictures of the pieces of the ruby to the media persons.
On the questions being raised about the safety of the jewellery donated by the kings of Chalukya and other dynasties Singhal said the two committees under Justice Wadhwa and M Jagganadha Rao had gone into the matter and reported that the temple jewellery as mentioned in Tiruvabharanam Register of 1952 was safe.
On the increasing demand that temple jewellery collection should be put on display, Singhal said he was personally in its favour. “If it was not possible as per the temple rules, the 3D image of the jewels should be displayed on website and the museum of TTD.
On the controversy over the retirement age of the priest and the retirement of the four chief priests, Singhal said that it was the service rule of the TTD which had fixed it 65 years. He denied that it was done as a disciplinary action against the four priests. “As per the TTD Service rules of 1956 and the GO issue the same year every hereditary servant and every assistant shall be not less than 25 years and no more than 65 years of age”, Singhal said.
Three priests were retired in January 2013 but they challenged the retirement age in the court. The court in its interim order asked the TTD to allow the priests to perform rituals without any emoluments or honorarium.
