On 1 January, Tirupati Balaji got a souvenir of Tamil Nadu’s Amma. AIADMK workers had offered the deity a silver plate engraved with an image of their party chief J Jayalalithaa, apparently, in honour of her birthday next month.
The matter came to light four days back when TTD officials opened the koppera hundi – a type of large donation box. The hundi is also called the Srivari hundi. The plate weighs around 1 kg and is estimated to be worth around Rs 40,000.
Chandrasekhar Pillai, Deputy Executive officer TTD to The News MinuteWe learned about the offering three or four days ago. As it was already dropped in the (Koppara) hundi, we couldn’t return it. We have sent it to treasury, they will take care of it.
It is difficult to understand how temple security could have missed it as AIADMK workers stood at a spot on the temple premises and distributed sweets, posed for a video with the silver plate, raising slogans saying Jayalalithaa would live for a hundred years interspersed with chants of “Govinda Govinda”.
The AIADMK workers was led by former AIADMK City Secretary for Katpady, Appu, who is seen holding up the plate.
The video is believed to have been taken on 1 January, after the group offered pujas and annadanam at alipiri. Watch the video here:
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)