Andhra Pradesh HC Seeks More Details on TTD Members

Vijayawada: The Andhra Pradesh High Court directed the endowments commissioner and Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams executive officer to submit more details on members of the newly constituted TTD trust board.

A division bench comprising Justices Akula Venkata Sesha Sai and R. Raghunandan Rao held a hearing on a petition here on Wednesday filed by a former railway employee, Chintha Venkateswaralu, with a plea to declare the appointment of Sarat Chandra Reddy, Dr Ketan Desai, and YSRC MLA Samineni Udayabhanu as invalid, claiming that they had criminal antecedents.

Petitioner’s counsel Jada Sravan Kumar argued that Sarat Chandra Reddy was an accused in the Delhi liquor scam, while Dr Ketan Desai faced charges of corruption while serving as a member of the erstwhile Medical Council of India, and so was the case with Samineni Udayabhanu having a criminal history. He argued that the presence of members with criminal antecedents on the TTD trust board would affect the sentiments of the devotees.

After hearing both parties, the court adjourned the case for the next hearing on Sept. 13.