Telangana CM K Chandrasekhar Rao in soup over temple donations; PIL filed

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HYDERABAD: Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao’s temple donation have landed him in a soup. City resident Professor PL Vishweshwar Rao has filed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) in the Hyderabad High Court demanding to know is the money's being spent from public coffers.

Last month, the Telengana CM offered a 57-diamond studded nose ring reportedly worth Rs 5 crore. 

Earlier, he donated a golden crown worth Rs 59 lakh to Bhadrakali temple in Warangal and a golden moustache for Veerabhadra Swami temple in Mahbubabad. The CM also donated gold ornaments worth Rs 5 crore to Lord Balaji at Tirumala. 

The PIL argues that all the money has been funded from the public exchequer and is unconstitutional. 

The PIL reportedly also sought details if KCR took his entire family and party leaders in private flights on public money.

KCR's donation spree drew flak from several counters. 

In March 2017, Professor Kancha Ilaiah and CPI-M leader Gundamala Ramulu had also filed a petition demanding to know the source of these gold offerings.

Meanwhile, the Telangana CM claimed that all expenses, which reportedly runs up to Rs 6 crore, has been funded out of his own pockets with the help of friends and family.

The hearing date is yet to be finalised.

In February 2017, KCR donated gold ornaments worth around Rs 5 crore to the famous hill shrine of Lord Venkateswara in nearby Tirumala. It was the first of such a huge offering ever made by a state government after Independence in the country, to the 2,000-year-old hill shrine, richest in the world, the sources said. The offering included a golden garland studded with fossilised shells called "Shaligram Haram" and a multi-layer gold necklace called "Makhara Kantabharanam," totally weighing about 19 kg and worth about Rs 5 crore to the temple Executive Officer, D Sambasiva Rao this morning, temple sources told PTI.