The AP secretariat, especially the endowments department is now witnessing an animated buzz about how a minister punished some endowments officials for not showing enough respect to his relatives when the latter visited the Simhachalam temple. The two officials were called to Amaravati and were given a dressing down.

The stories goes that endowments minister Vellampalli Srinivas’s close relatives recently visited Simhachalam temple. The minister reportedly issued oral orders to ensure that his relatives get the VIP protocol. However, due to some communication gap and huge crowds, there were some gaffes. This has left the relatives of the minister livid.

Sources say that some 20 relatives came to the temple and there was advance intimation of their arrival to the Simhachalam EO’s office. While the team of relatives was crossing the ropes of the queue line, AEO Raghavakumar stopped them. He later came to know they were relatives of the minister and he allowed them to go into the temple.

But, this was enough for the relatives to see red. They immediately complained to the Endowments minister, who immediately transferred him from Simhachalam within two days. Another official too was shifted out of the temple. Despite the pleadings of the staff, the transfer was not revoked. This action has now become the talk of the town in the Endowments Ministry.