The Sri Venkateswara Swamy temple of Tirumala district, Andhra Pradesh, popularly known as the Tirupati Balaji temple is one of the richest & most renowned Hindu temples in India. The temple is dedicated to Lord Venkateswara, a form of Lord Vishnu, who is believed to have descended to earth to help humanity overcome the challenges of the Kali Yuga. Visiting the Sri Venkateswara Swamy temple & doing Lord Venkateswara is considered severely auspicious. An estimated 60,000 - 80,000 devotees visit the temple every day! Since 1715, it has been a tradition to offer special sweet laddus known as SriVari laddu or Tirupati laddu to Lord Venkateswara every day and then given to the devotees as prasadam after the darshan in the temple. If you have ever eaten it, you know that it is very tasty & considered holy. Some even claim the laddus to have magical wish-fulfilling & healing powers. The laddu’s recipe has been kept a secret since its introduction. It is prepared only in the temple’s kitchen. It has received a Geographical indication tag too, which entitles only the temple’s trust - Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) of making and selling them. On 18th September 2024, Andhra Pradesh CM & Telugu Desam Party (TDP) leader N Chandrababu Naidu accused the state's previous Jagan Mohan Reddy’s YSR Congress (YSRCP) government of using animal fat and substandard ingredients in making the famous Tirupati laddus, which is given as 'prasadam' at the renowned Sri Venkateswara Swamy temple. Naidu’s claim shocked the whole nation. Centre for Analysis and Learning in Livestock & Food (CALF) is a multidisciplinary analytical laboratory at the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) in Anand, Gujarat. Naidu claimed that lab testing & an 8-page report from CALF have confirmed the presence of animal fats including fish oil, pork fat, and beef fat in the famous laddus. TDP spokesperson Anam Venkata Ramana Reddy displayed the purported lab report. The report confirmed the presence of "beef tallow", "lard" (relating to pig fat) and fish oil in the given ghee sample. The sample receipt date was 9th July 2024 and the lab report is dated 16th July 2024. He further added that pure ghee was now being used and everything had been sanitised at the temple, leading to improved quality under TDP rule. After Naidu's accusation, several Andhra Pradesh ministers & MLAs also attacked Jagan Mohan Reddy & his government over the unreligious & unholy act at their most sacred temple. In response, YSRCP called Naidu's allegation "malicious" (evil & desire to harm others) and said that Reddy would "stoop to any level for political gain". They called Naidu’s claim fake & accused him of severely damaging the sanctity of the holy Tirumala and the faith of crores of Hindus. They are demanding a CBI investigation to verify Naidu's allegations. On 19th September 2024, the Karnataka Milk Federation said the TTD board has not purchased ghee from them in the past 4 years. The TTD also confirmed the same and added that the new TDP government has been supplying Nandini Ghee to the temple ever since it came into power in Andhra Pradesh. Many social media posts claimed that Amul ghee was used in making the laddus. On 20th September 2024, Amul addressed the issue on X and informed that they never supplied Ghee to TTD and requested everyone to stop spreading misinformation against it (Amul). It also filed FIRs against several social media users who spread the misinformation. On 21st September 2024, TTD assured that “the divinity and purity of the laddus” are now 'unblemished' and announced plans to install an “in-house adulteration testing machine” to ensure food safety & purity standards at the temple. On 22nd September 2024, it was revealed that Tamil Nadu-based AR Dairy Food Private Limited supplied the ghee to TTD, and that TTD had initiated a legal action against it. AR Dairy Food Private Limited called the allegations “unsubstantiated” and said that a four-member expert team from the temple administration regularly visited their plant to check their capacity and quality control measures. It also claimed that its ghee samples are always tested in national laboratories before being sent to TTD and that after receiving the ghee, it is again checked by TTD’s own food safety officer.  On 23rd September 2024, TTD performed a 'maha shanti homam' ritual in the temple complex to purify the temple & its premises. Executive officials of TTD & all the head priests of the temple participated in it. 3 new 'homagundams' (havan kunds) were installed inside the temple in different directions to nullify the "sinful effects" of using the animal ingredients. Later that same day, Former TTD chairman, YV Subba Reddy approached the Supreme Court & requested the formation of an independent committee to investigate the lab report. According to some reports, CALF’s purported report on the laddus is inconclusive. Identifying specific fats like beef tallow requires further testing and therefore proves only adulteration & does not definitively prove the presence of animal fat. Could this be true or is it a political stunt? Share your thoughts in the comments section.

Tags

• beef
• tirupati temple
• prasad laddu

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