Major Heist At Tirupati’s Govindaraja Swamy Temple; Three Diamond-Studded Crowns Go Missing

Precious jewellery items, including three crowns adorned by the processional deities at the Govindaraja Swamy temple, which is managed by Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD), went missing on Saturday (2 February), Times of India has reported.

According to the report, the TTD officials swung into action and rushed to the temple after the incident was brought to their notice.

Camera footage of the temple was being examined by senior officials to figure out how the jewellery went missing from a place that is always filled with devotees and security personnel, the report cited sources in the vigilance and security as saying.

The priest and paricharaks were questioned by the senior officials after the incident. The TTD also filed a complaint with the police, which started a probe in the matter.

TTD joint executive officer Pola Bhaskar was cited in The New Indian Express report as saying that the crowns belonged to the processional deities at one of the 18 sub-temples in Sri Govindaraja Swamy temple. The temple was closed for devotees at 5pm for ‘Naivedyam’ and reopened within 45 minutes, after which the staff noticed that the three diamond-studded crowns were missing.