The 12-day-old excavation in the 14th Century Chennampalli fort in Tuggali mandal of Kurnool district in search of minerals and precious stones took a dramatic turn when one Trivikrama Raju of Owk claimed to be the 14th generation descendent of the royal family of Harihararayalu and Bukkarayalu, who ruled from the fort came on the scene.
Trivikram Raju, working as an Assistant Engineer in the Irrigation Department in Telangana, met Tuggali tehsildar Gopal Rao and showed him the succession certificate issued by Archaeology Department that he belonged to the royal family. Mr. Raju asserted that Chennampalli fort was built by King Bukkarayalu as a seat of administration aligned to the Gooty fort.
He also showed to the tehsildar a map indicating the Bukkarayalu dynasty and Araveedu Kshatriya kings and the then administration, which he said, was given to him by the Archaeological Department. He also drew a sketch indicating that the treasure was located in the middle of the fort. Mr. Raju claimed that he has total rights on the fort as a descendent.
The dilapidated Chennampalli fort and some structures in it were historic monuments which should be protected by the government, Mr. Raju asserted. Lamenting use of explosives for blasting operations and digging of the fort premises, he submitted a representation demanding immediate stoppage of the ongoing excavation and warned that he would move the court against it. The tehsildar assured Mr. Raju that the evidences produced by him would be put forth before the higher-ups and excavation would be stopped if they instructed so.
Meanwhile, officials brought scanners to examine the tunnel that surfaced in the digging operations. After digging to a depth of 30 feet, a huge boulder surfaced and the officials almost stopped the excavation at that point. The security personnel who guarded the fort day and night returned.
Special Deputy Collector Subba Reddy, Adoni RDO Obulesu, Assistant Director of Mining T. Nataraj, tahsildar Gopal Rao, village revenue officer Kasiranga Swamy and Circle Inspector Vikramasimha oversaw the excavation work. There was no clarity on how long the excavation would continue or whether it was being given up.
