VIJAYAWADA: The Andhra Pradesh High Court criticised the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) Executive Officer (EO) for failing to file a counter affidavit in a case involving the theft of 900 US dollars (around Rs 72,000) from the Sri Venkateswara Swamy hundi.
Justice Gannamaneni Ramakrishna Prasad, hearing the petition on Friday, questioned TTD’s inaction and sarcastically remarked that the temple body appeared to be “sleeping through” the issue.
The court directed the EO to appear personally and explain TTD’s decision on the petitioner’s request for a CID probe.
Following repeated pleas from TTD counsel Srinivasababu, the court exempted personal appearance on payment of Rs 20,000 to the High Court Advocates’ Association.
CID counsel Sai Rohit confirmed that all case records had been seized in line with court directives.
TTD’s lawyer said meetings were held with departmental heads but could not be completed as the Chief Vigilance and Security Officer was on leave, which drew further censure from the bench. The High Court adjourned the case to October 27.