Tirupati laddu: CM remarks trigger a storm

The famous Tirupati laddu, known for its scrumptiousness, has been in the news for the past couple of days as the remarks made by Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu that animal fat was mixed in the ghee used for the preparation of the ‘prasadam’ during the YSRCP regime created a controversy.

The remarks made by Chandrababu Naidu during the NDA legislature party meeting held near Mangalagiri on 18 September triggered a war of words between the leaders of the YSRCP and the TDP, while several religious leaders demanded punishment for those behind it.

With the issue taking a serious turn, the Chief Minister sought a detailed report from the TTD authorities. Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan, while commenting on the issue, said the government would take action against those responsible for it. He also called for a ‘Santhana Dharma Rakshana Board’ at the national level to look into the issues related to temples.

Jagan hits back

Reacting to the Chief Minister’s claim, former Chief Minister and YSRCP chief Jaganmohan Reddy said: “Chandrababu Naidu is not sparing even God for his political gains. The allegation is baseless and the Chief Minister is making such charges only to divert the public attention from the failures of the TDP’s 100-day governance.”

Taking exception to the remarks of the Chief Minister, former TTD chairman Y V Subbareddy said he never compromised on the quality of laddu. Subbareddy warned that he would proceed legally if the charge was not proven.

According to IT and HRD Minister Nara Lokesh, ghee samples have been sent to a lab (NDDB CALF) in Gujarat and it confirmed the presence of fish oil and beef tallow in the ghee. However, AR Dairy Food Private Limited has made it clear that it supplied ghee to the TTD after multiple lab tests. “We have documents to prove it,” said quality control officials of the lab.

Meanwhile, the Union Health Ministry has sought a detailed report on the issue. Union Health Minister J P Nadda said on 20 September that the Centre would further look into the Tirupati laddu controversy and take action.

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This article is written by Senior Journalist Lakkoju Nagesh Babu