The matter of animal fat in Tirupati temple prasad has shocked people across the country. Amid the controversy over the ghee used in laddu prasad, Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD) has assured devotees that the sanctity of the holy prasad has been restored. In an update on social media on Friday night, TTD, which manages the Sri Venkateswara Swamy temple in Tirumala, confirmed that the divinity and sanctity of Srivari laddu is now completely intact.
“The divinity and sanctity of the Srivari laddu is now untainted. TTD is committed to safeguard the sanctity of the laddu prasadam for the satisfaction of all devotees,” the temple board said in the post. The temple authority, which oversees the country’s richest shrine, said it had found substandard ghee and traces of fat in samples tested for quality, confirming earlier claims made by Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Wednesday.
Let us tell you that the allegations are against the previous YSRCP government, after which former CM YS Jagan Mohan Reddy dismissed the issue as diversionary politics and termed it a fabricated story. The central government has sought a report from the Andhra Pradesh government and assured appropriate action after reviewing it. Union Food Minister Pralhad Joshi has called for a thorough investigation into the allegations. According to a lab report cited by the TTD on Friday, ‘lard’ (pig fat) and other impurities were found in the ghee. TTD Executive Officer J Shyamala Rao confirmed that lab tests revealed the presence of animal fat and lard in selected samples, and the board is in the process of blacklisting the contractor responsible for supplying the adulterated ghee.
Meanwhile, police on Saturday registered an FIR against seven users of social media platform X for spreading misinformation that poor quality ghee used to make laddus at Tirupati temple was of Amul brand, an official said. A major political controversy has erupted after Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu claimed that animal fat was used to make laddus at Sri Venkateswara Swamy temple in Tirupati during the previous government in the state. Anand-based Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF) has denied supplying ghee to Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD), which manages the temple. GCMMF markets its milk and dairy products under the brand name ‘Amul’.
