The Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) is planning to file a defamation case against Andhra Jyothy for carrying a series of reports in its print and web editions over the alleged smuggling of human hair from Tirumala to Myanmar.
The TTD, which has already filed a Rs 100-crore civil defamation case against Andhra Jyothy, for allegedly tarnishing the image of the Tirumala temple by publishing stories about alleged Christianisation in the temple, has taken the reports on hair smuggling seriously.
TTD additional executive officer A V Dharma Reddy on Wednesday said the allegations were baseless and untrue and warned of criminal cases against the mainstream media and social media for spreading lies with regard to human hair transport.
He told reporters in Tirumala that the TTD had established a perfect system in storage, processing, handling and transport of tonsured hair of devotees and that there was no room for any misuse or pilferage or malpractices.
“The responsibility of the TTD ends with handing over the tonsured hair to bidders who purchased it on e- platform. The TTD has nothing to with that once it has sold the product to the bidder,” he said.
Dharma Reddy said the TTD was in touch with the Assam Rifles and the Mizoram police who were still probing the roots of the of hair stock smuggling and yet to pinpoint it to any location.
“Hair tonsuring is undertaken at scores of temples across India and the alleged hair bags could have come from anywhere,” he said and appealed to devotees not to fall prey to such false news against TTD.
He said the TTD would blacklist the names of companies if the authorities officially declared them.
