Mysuru: He may have been raided by the Income Tax department recently, but that did not stop Energy Minister D.K. Shivakumar, from making an offering of a pair of silver elephants weighing 31 kg to goddess Chamundeswari in the Chamundeswari temple atop the Chamundi Hills on Monday.
Speaking to reporters later, he said he was fulfilling a vow he had made. “She (the goddess) has fulfilled one of my wishes, which I cannot reveal in public. And so I have offered these elephants to her as a sign of my devotion to her,” he explained. The Minister, however, claimed it was not a new offering as he had presented these silver elephants to the goddess a long time ago and had only repaired the damage they had suffered over the years before returning them to the temple. “The elephants had become old and a few parts were worn out. The priests brought this to my notice during one of my visits to the temple and so I took them with me and repaired the damage before offering them to the goddess again today,” he said.
The offering was preceded by a “thulabhaara” (an offering equivalent to his weight) on Sunday, Mr Shivakumar added.
Emphasising that the offering had nothing to do with the Income Tax raid on his house, he said, “I have never done anything wrong, cheated or erred in any way. So the goddess will always protect me. Only those who steal and cheat live in fear. I don’t.”
When contacted, the temple chief priest, Sri Shashishekar Dixit, told DC that Mr Shivakumar had taken the worn out silver elephants eight months ago and returned them after doing the necessary touch-ups on Monday.
“They are not new. He is an ardent devotee of goddess Chamundeswari and regularly visits the temple,” he added.
