Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam Vigilance officials on Monday nabbed a 9-member gang, which was selling tokens for the famed Tirupati laddu' at a higher price, and seized 80 tokens from its members.
The Vigilance officials managed to nab the black-marketers after they were tipped off by devotees to the temple who complained that they were being demanded Rs. 50 for a token having a face value of Rs. 10.
The long wait to get hands on a token for the 'Tirupati Laddu' has given unscrupulous persons a quick and lucrative money-making opportunity in and around the Tirumala temple.
The Vigilance officials recovered 80 laddu tokens from the possession of the gang-members and handed over them over to the One Town police station in Tirumala.
Chief Minister K Rosaiah had only recently directed the Tirumala Tirupathi Devasthanam's Administrative Board to be more vigilant over the irregularities in the functioning of the temple.
The state High Court had also, on Monday, directed the state government to expedite the ongoing CID inquiry into allegations irregularities against TTD special officer A Dharma Reddy, an accused in the Seva ticket scam.