Tirupati: TTD’s seized gold yet to reach its treasury

Tirupati: The TTD’s 1,381 kg of gold, seized by the poll squad in Tamil Nadu on the day before the general election, has not reached back to the treasury of the temple adm-inistration in Tirupati, though two days have passed after the bank officials submitted valid documents to the authorities concerned.

On Wednesday night, the poll squad spotted three vans with nearly 10 armed guards passing-by near Puduchatram village on Chennai-Tiruvallur Highway. When they intercepted the vehicles, the officials fou-nd 56 boxes containing nearly 22 kg gold in each of the vehicles, amounting to a total of 1,381 kg of gold.

The officials seized the gold, after the officials from Punjab National Bank, escorting the vehicles allegedly failed to authenticate that the gold belonged to the TTD.

According to sources in the TTD, the PNB officials from Tirupati left for Chennai after they came to know that the gold was intercepted in TN by the poll squad. The bank officials also carried an authentication letter given by the TTD, which claimed that the gold belonged to the temple administration.

It was learnt that the higher authority in EC has given the clearance to release the gold. But, with the non-availability of the staff concerned who were with the squad during the seizure, there was a delay in releasing the gold.

The PNB officials are coordinating with the Tiruvallur district officials. It was expected th-at the gold may reach the TTD’s treasury late on Friday or on Saturday.