Devotee who secretly filmed interior of Tirumala temple held
Tirupati (Andhra Pradesh), May 12: A devotee responsible for a recent security breach at the famous Sri Venkateshwara temple near here has been apprehended, a senior official said on Friday.
The vigilance wing of the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD, which manages the affairs of the hill shrine, has caught the devotee who filmed Ananda Nilayam, the gold-plated gopuram in the sanctum sanctorum, on May 7.
TTD executive officer A.V. Dharma Reddy revealed on Friday that the devotee, Rahul Reddy from Khammam, has been identified and apprehended based on CCTV footage. He will be interrogated by the Tirupati police.
He said action will be initiated against the on duty security staff at the scanning areas for the lapse in checking on that day.
The devotee passed all the security checks and still managed to reach the interior area of the temple with a hidden camera. He secretly filmed Ananda Nilayam and inner precincts of Vimana Prakaram, a pathway around the main sanctum.
The incident came to light on May 8 after the video went viral on social media. The TTD had ordered a probe as electronic gadgets are strictly prohibited inside the temple. TTD's vigilance and security wing took the incident seriously as the devotee managed to enter the temple with the hidden camera without being detected by metal detectors and multiple frisking points.
TTD's chief vigilance and security officer (CVSO) D. Narasimha Kishore had stated that it rained heavily in Tirumala on May 7 and there was a power outage for two hours in the hill town. He suspects that the miscreant managed to sneak in with a pen camera during that period.
Meanwhile, Dharma Reddy said the CVSO has been instructed to study a more mechanised and quick way of checking akin to the airport model so that darshan can be provided to 5,000-5,500 devotees in an hour after thorough checking in the scan area.
"For that we have also consulted Central and state IB teams who will be visiting Tirumala by next week," said Dharma Reddy.