Sri Lankan PM offers prayers at Tirumala temple

Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe offered prayers at the famous hill shrine of Lord Venkateswara in Tirumala town today.

The 69-year-old Wickremesinghe, dressed in traditional attire and accompanied by wife Maithree and a few Sri Lankan officials, visited the shrine this morning, a temple official told PTI.

On arrival, he was accorded a traditional welcome by priests and top officials of the temple, administered by the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams.

Wickremesinghe here on a 20-hour spiritual visit, flew in from Chennai by an IAF helicopter last evening.

This is his third visit as Sri Lanka's prime minister to the hill shrine after previously coming here in 2002 and 2016.

Tight security arrangements were put in place in view of the visit to Tirumala hills.