Lobbying begins for TTD chief post

Several bigwigs including politicians and businessmen have started lobbying for the post of chairperson of the Tirumala Tirupati Devastanams (TTD), which is going to fall vacant on August 24.

Apart from the outgoing chairman and former MP, Mr D.K. Audikesavulu Naidu, the five-time Guntur MP, Mr Rayapati Sambasiva Rao, the industrialist, Mr Grandhi Mallikarjuna Rao, the former Rajya Sabha member, Mr Girish Sanghi and Mrs Indira Reddy, two-term TTD Board member and wife of former MP, Mr T. Subbirami Reddy, are jostling for the post.

TTD sources said that Mr Audikesavulu, who has been chairman for two terms, is trying for another stint and is influencing the Congress high command to achieve this. In 2008, the high command had suggested his name to the then chief minister, Dr Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy, and the latter had obliged.

Mr Audikesavulu Naidu, who was then a Telugu Desam MP, had helped out the UPA government during the trust vote in the Lok Sabha by disobeying the party whip. His appointment as TTD chairperson was seen as a quid pro quo gesture. Dr Reddy even dumped his loyalist, Mr B. Karunakara Reddy, to appoint Mr Audikesavulu.

Though Mr Audikesavulu had stirred up controversy during his tenure by allowing special VVIP Darshan and pujas at Tirumala to businessmen at odd timings causing inconvenience to devotees, he is confident of getting another term.

However, some Telugu news channels have started a campaign to stymie his chances by portraying him as pro-rich and against ordinary devotees.