Controversy over TTD alloting VIP passes in the crucial first four hours on January 1.
Tirumala: The temple administration of the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams doesn’t seem to care about the growing resentment over the issuance of VIP passes for New Year’s day.
Ever since the temple administration announced that around 6,000 VIP passes would be issued for the darshan of Lord Venkateswara on January 1, 2014, there has been an outcry from many quarters over the manner in which the temple administration decided to roll out a red carpet to VIPs on the very first day of the new year.
What has come as a shock is the exclusive time slot allotted by the TTD for the darshan by the VIPs. The crucial first four hours on January 1 have been dedicated to VIPs, which is creating a huge flutter in several quarters.
Apart from the time slot, the manner in which the TTD has been grading VIPs for the issuance of the sought-after passes is drawing flak. As a first, the temple administration has earmarked special entry points even for the VIPs.
Meanwhile, state endowments minister C. Ramachandriah’s remarks ab-out the disparity exhibited by the TTD management in the issuance of VIP pa-sses for the new year has come as an embarrassment for the temple administration.
While the administration doesn’t seem to have dared to “restrict” the VIP influx on the important day, the TTD’s decision to downsize the overall number of devotees for the darshan of the Lord on January 1, 2014, has come as a real disappointment to the general devotees.
This is more so because the number of devotees, as per devasthanam records, who had the Lord’s darshan on new year’s day and the auspicious Vaikunta Ekadasi eve, was over a lakh in the past few years while only 64,000 devotees have been allowed this time around.
( Source : dc )
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