The reward came exactly a month later. Liquor baron and expelled Telugu Desam Party MP from Chittoor D K Adikesavalu Naidu was appointed chairman of Tirumala Tirupati Devesthanams, the world's richest Hindu shrine, for having shown his loyalty to the United Progressive Alliance government during the vote of confidence in the Lok Sabha on July 22.

Adikesavalu will take over from B Karunakar Reddy on Monday for a three-year term. Karunakar Reddy was appointed in August 2006 for a two-year term ending on August 25, 2008, and he had been expecting an extension.

The development, which was clinched after Adikesavalu met Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy on Saturday, took everyone by surprise.

Adikesavalu had served as TTD chairman during N Chandrababu Naidu's [Images] regime from November 2003 to April 2004 and his appointment then had allegedly triggered protests on the grounds that 'disrespect' was being shown to the holy shrine by the appointment of a liquor baron as the chairman.

The decision to appoint Adikesavalu as TTD head by the chief minister is seen as a political move to prevent him from joining megastar Chiranjeevi's [Images] political outfit.

He was the party treasurer when P V Narasihma Rao was Congress president.

Sources said he will resign from the Lok Sabha. Adikesavalu was one of the two MPs who was expelled from the party by Chandrababu Naidu after the vote of confidence.

Where his vote actually did go was mired in controversy, though the records finally did establish that Adikesavalu had voted against the motion. Naidu, however, still expelled him on the grounds that his intention was to vote for the UPA government.