VIJAYAWADA: The High Court of Andhra Pradesh on Wednesday asked the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) not to release funds for the works it proposed to take up in Tirupati. The TTD had decided to allocate `100 crore for constructing roads and taking up sanitation works in Tirupati for the convenience of pilgrims visiting Tirumala. Subsequently, BJP spokesperson and former TTD Board member G Bhanuprakash Reddy filed a PIL in the high court.
The bench of Chief Justice Dheeraj Singh Thakur and Justice Rao Raghunandan Rao heard the PIL. The petitioner’s counsel Y Balaji said the TTD should utilise the funds for its regular functioning and Dharmic activities only. Utilising the funds for any other purpose is against the law, he added.
Arguing that there was nothing wrong in using the funds for providing amenities to pilgrims, senior counsel Chittarapu Raghu pointed out that besides the pilgrim's amenities complexes, several TTD-run institutions and schools are in Tirupati. Counsel for the Municipal Corporation of Tirupati K Suresh Kumar Reddy told the court that the MCT was spending `50 crore on sanitation works.
The court primarily found fault with the allocation of TTD funds for development works in Tirupati. The bench observed that the funds to the Trust are given by devotees to God. Stating that the process can continue as tenders for sanitation works have already been invited, the court, asked officials to neither award the contract to anyone nor release the funds. The bench asked the TTD and MCT to file a detailed counter and posted the matter for hearing on December 27.