Expensive Gifts Given To Prominent Temples In Andhra And Telangana Go Missing, No CCTV Footage Available 

Diamond studded bangles worth Rs 6 lakh, and handwoven sarees are among the gifts that have gone missing from famous temples in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, The Indian Express has reported. The missing gifts include a hand-woven silk saree gifted by Chief Minister of Telangana - K Chandrashekar Rao in May 2016.

As a result of these thefts, Chief ministers of both Telangana and Andhra Pradesh have ordered inquiries.

The temples in question are Kanaka Durga Temple in Vijayawada, Kaleshwaram Temple in Telangana’s Jayshankar Bhupalpally district and Dharmapuri temple in Jagtiyal district of Telangana. There is no CCTV footage available to investigate these incidents.

The latest incident happened on Sunday (5 August), when a expensive saree worth Rs 20,000 was presented at the Kanaka Durga temple. It was found missing when the devotees who had offered the saree, went back to collect it.

Kanaka Durga Temple Trust Board has not filed a formal police complaint, but an internal inquiry has been ordered.

“CCTV footage is not available of the time the incident occurred. There is some black and white footage from an old analog camera but it is of no use. They did not lodge a complaint as they are conducting their own internal inquiry. Maybe they will lodge complaint on Wednesday after they conclude who may have stolen it,’’ Inspector of Vijayawada, K Vishwanadh told Indian Express.

The report claims that a preliminary inquiry has suggested the involvement of Trust Board member K Suryalatha Kumari in the theft. She has been suspended pending investigation.

Besides this, on 23 July it was found that a handwoven saree gifted by Telangana CM K Chandrashekar Rao, was replaced with a fake one. A temple worker has been arrested on suspicion of theft. No CCTV footage of the theft is available for investigation.

In the third case, an audit at the Dharmapuri temple on July 24 revealed that the diamond studded bangles worth Rs 6 lakh has gone missing. Officials have said that the CCTV cameras were not working in the temple at the time of the theft.