On 30th September, the Supreme Court of India criticised Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu for making allegations publicly about the use of adulterated ghee in the preparation of laddus offered as prasadam at the Tirumala Tirupati Temple. The court questioned whether the comments made in public by CM Naidu were appropriate, as the investigation into the matter was still underway. During the hearing, the court noted that there was no proof that the contaminated ghee was used in the preprations of the Laddus.
Luthra (reads): A false positive can be obtained…method is not applicable to…
— Live Law (@LiveLawIndia) September 30, 2024
J Viswanathan: Does not prudence dictate that you take a second opinion? Normal things, we take second opinion. No proof that said ghee was used.#SupremeCourt #Tirupati
Allegations and lab reports
CM Naidu alleged that ghee adulterated with animal fat and other foreign substances was used under the previous YSRCP government to prepare the Tirupati laddus. During the hearing, it was noted that the ghee samples which were tested were rejected and not used for the preparation of the laddus. The court questioned whether such public comments by the CM were warranted.
The two-judge bench, comprising Justice BR Gavai and KV Viswanathan, was hearing the petitions seeking an investigation into the controversy over the use of adulterated ghee in Tirupati laddus. The Solicitor General of India, Tushar Mehta, was instructed by the court to consult the Government of India on whether a central investigation was necessary in the matter. The next hearing has been scheduled for 3rd October.
Religious sentiments and political statements
Raising concerns about the comments made by the CM, the court highlighted their potential to affect the sentiments of millions of devotees worldwide. Furthermore, during the hearing, the court noted that the Chief Executive Officer of the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD) denied the allegations that adulterated ghee was used in the preparation of the laddus.
Notably, Senior Advocate Siddharth Luthra, representing TTD in court, clarified that the ghee used in June and early July was not tested, leaving a scope for assertions. However, it was the ghee from two tankers delivered on 6th and 12th July that was found to be contaminated, and that ghee was not used, as alleged by the CM.
Court’s questions: Gods and politics
During the hearing, the court raised concerns about the involvement of political figures in religious matters, especially when an investigation is underway. Justice Viswanathan pointed out that the lab report was inconclusive and hinted that the rejected ghee was tested, not the ghee used in the prasadam. Justice Gavai added that political figures should refrain from making statements that could harm the sentiments of millions of devotees.
Rohatgi: We have lab reports
— Live Law (@LiveLawIndia) September 30, 2024
J Viswanathan: [Report] is not at all clear. If you had already ordered investigation, what was the need to go to press? Report came in July, statement came in Sept#SupremeCourt #Tirupati
“When you hold a constitutional office, we expect the gods to be kept away from politics,” said Justice Gavai, echoing the court’s concern over political interference in religious issues. Both justices questioned whether the statement was necessary, given that an investigation had already been ordered by the CM’s office.
J Gavai: When you hold constitutional office, it is expected that you would…we expect Gods to be kept away from polity
— Live Law (@LiveLawIndia) September 30, 2024
J Viswanathan: Unless you were sure, how did you go to public with that? What was the purpose of investigation?#SupremeCourt #Tirupati
Special investigation or central probe?
The core issue in court is to determine whether the ongoing investigation by the State’s Special Investigation Team is sufficient, or whether the investigation should be handed over to an independent central agency.
Subramanian Swamy, one of the petitioners in the case, argued that the statement made by the CM was without substantial evidence and could have far-reaching consequences. He further noted that statements from high-ranking officials should be responsible and carefully measured. He questioned whether a fair and impartial investigation would be possible after the CM’s public comments.
In his petition, Swamy accused Naidu of using the matter for political gains against the previous YSRCP government. This was refuted by Senior Advocate Mukul Rohatgi, who represented the Andhra Pradesh government in court. He countered the allegations, asserting that it was Swamy’s petition that was politically motivated.
Tirupati Laddu Prasadam controversy
On 18 September Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu accused the previous YS Jagan Mohan Reddy administration of using animal fat in making laddus served at the renowned Hindu temple during his address at the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) legislative party meeting. “They (YSRC government) not only provided substandard food to the devotees, such as Anna Prasadam in Tirumala, but also used inferior quality ingredients to make Prasadam, which is offered to Lord Venkateswara. Instead of using pure ghee, they used animal fat,” he charged.
The chief minister further added, “Today, we are using pure ghee and cleansed the system in the temple. Quality of Prasadam and food have improved and steps are being taken to make further improvements.” His statement was eventually validated by the test findings. The conclusions drawn by the report revealed that there were residues of animal fat in the ghee used to prepare iconic Tirupati laddu prasadam. Furthermore, ingredients like soybean, sunflower, olive, rapeseed, linseed, wheat germ, maize germ, cotton seed, coconut, palm kernel fat, and palm oil were also used in making the laddus.
After that, a laboratory report emerged, which showed that ghee used by the Tirupati temple contained beef fat, pig fat, fish oil, and various types of plant-based oil, and the content of dairy fat was very low. The test was conducted by the National Dairy Development Board’s “Centre of Analysis and Learning in Livestock and Food” (CALF) laboratory on behalf of Tirumala Tirupathi Devastanam. TTD had decided to test the ghee after receiving multiple complaints about the deteriorating quality and taste of its famous laddus.
TTD has already started blacklisting the suppliers of ghee after the report came out.
