Telangana chief minister to offer gold moustache at temple amid allegations of public funds misuse

Hyderabad Feb 24 : Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, who is facing criticism for donating public money to various religious institutions, now plans to make offerings worth Rs 75,000 in the form of a gold moustache at the Kuravi Veerabhadra Swamy temple in the state’s Warangal district, . He also plans to donate a golden crown to goddess Bhadrakali in Warangal, a nose stud to goddess Kanaka Durga in Vijayawada and another to goddess Padmavathi in Tiruchanur, 

Rao had promised to make offerings to deities in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh if his campaign for a separate state of Telangana was successful. “Offerings to the lord are part of his vow made before the realising of Telangana,” government advisor KV Ramanachary had said. A three-member panel was set up to coordinate the manufacturing of these offerings and a Hyderabad-based jeweller was commissioned to make them.

This comes two days after Rao made offerings worth Rs 5.6 crore in ornaments at the Tirumala temple in Andhra Pradesh. In October, the chief minister had presented a gold crown worth Rs 3.5 crore to the goddess Bhadrakali in Warangal. He had also made offerings of a crown and necklace to deity Venkateswara in Tirumala and a nose stud to Goddess Kanaka Durga in Vijayawada.

Rao has been under severe criticism for this flamboyance, which is reportedly billed to the government. The money for these ornaments is believed to have came from the Common Good Fund for the Endowments Department.

Opposition parties such as the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party have come down heavily on Rao for using public money to fulfil his “personal vows”. Congress leader Madhu Yashki Goud told ANI that Opposition should file a complaint against the chief minister for this “gross misuse of public money”.