Where are the ornaments gifted by 16th century ruler to Tirumala temple, CIC asks

The commission was hearing the plea of Andhra Pradesh-based historian and activist BKSR Ayyangar, who has sought to know if these ornaments and jewels were still present in the temple’s treasury. He claimed that the TTD was refusing to provide any information to his RTI queries. “They claim that all the ornaments donated to Lord Venkateshwara are safe in the treasury, but they cannot make the record public nor show proof,” he said.

He further contended that a five-member ASI team had submitted in November 2011 that the ornaments mentioned in the inscriptions and engravings on the temple’s walls did not tally with those in the treasury.

In his order, CIC Acharyulu said, “The PMO needs to understand that it was not a simple question of weeding out a representation of appellant, but taking up concrete measures for securing the monuments of glorious cultural past of India…… Managing temple is not commerce and the information is not commercial.”

Inscriptions on walls in the Lord Venkateshwara temple state that in his first visit on February 10, 1513, Sri Krishna Deva Raya donated a “Ratna kireetam” (jeweled crown) of gold studded with 160 emeralds, 423 diamonds, 3 rubies, 10 sapphires, 17 cat eyes, one agate and 1,339 pearls. He also donated a necklace made of three gold strings and studded with 1,370 blue pearls, one ruby and two sapphires; a gold pendant studded with six pearls, 60 diamonds, five garnets, three rubies and 11 emeralds.