Black marketing of TTD tickets exposed

Tirumala: Despite the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams streamlining the issuance of seva tickets and VIP break darshan tickets under the discretionary quota, black marketing of special darshan tickets of Lord Venkateswara continues to thrive in Tirumala.

The vigilance wing of TTD caught a tout red-handed while selling break darshan and Kalyanotsavam tickets at exorbitant rates to devotees. The tout, B. Sivaiah,  a resident of Tirupati, was selling tickets at double or triple the original rates to devotees, said sources.

According to TTD additional chief vigilance and security officer Shiva Kumar Reddy, Sivaiah had links with a doctor at Tirumala who had established himself as a point-of-contact for devotees who would approach him for special darshan tickets.

It is learnt that the doctor had links with a gold and silver merchant and others in Bengaluru who would send parties of devotees for darshan to Tirumala on a “one-plus-two” or “one-plus-three” basis, a commonly used terminology of touts in Tirumala.

Sivaiah used to get VIP break darshan and other seva tickets on the recommendation letters of TTD board members, people’s representatives, media persons and some TTD employees. The mobile phone of the tout proved to be a crucial source of information with the help of which links of the tout with media personnel and TTD employees were established.

With the links of the tout to TTD employees getting established, the vigilance wing had to obtain the approval of the TTD executive officer to go ahead with filing a complaint with the police.

On his approval, the vigilance wing filed a complaint at the II Town police station in Tirumala, where a case under sections 420 IPC and 120 B IPC have been registered and investigation is on in the black marketing case.

It is, however, learnt that pressure from politicians and members of the TTD Trust board has already begun to sideline the case given the sensitivity of the names involved.