“Politics In Name Of God”: Jagan Reddy Approaches Court Amid Tirupati Laddoo Row
As Andhra Pradesh undergoes a political storm over a controversy surrounding the Tirupati laddoos served at the temple, YSR Congress Party chief Jagan Mohan Reddy on Friday refuted the allegations of ghee adulteration raised by state Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu.
Dismissing the charges that animal fats and fish oil were present in the laddoos, Reddy hit out at Naidu and claimed that the allegations were an attempt to “divert attention” from the chief minister’s 100 days of rule in the state. He also accused the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) of doing “politics in the name of God.”
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The YSRCP leader approached the state high court, requesting a committee to probe the matter. The court directed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) to be filed by Wednesday, following which it would hear the case.
Reddy claimed that the report that found evidence of animal fat and beef oil in the Tirupati laddoos was from July, when Naidu served as the Chief Minister. He stated that when the YSR Congress found out about the quality of ghee, they informed the chief minister. He added that when his government was in power, they followed the usual protocol while choosing suppliers.
“The tender process occurs every six months, and the qualification criteria has not changed for decades. Suppliers must provide an NABL certificate and a product quality certificate. TTD collects samples from the ghee, and only products that pass certification are used. TDP is politicising religious matters. We have rejected the products in our regime 18 times,” claimed Reddy.
The massive controversy began when TDP leader and CM Naidu alleged that the previous YS Jagan Mohan Reddy government had used animal fat and other substandard ingredients for making Tirupati laddoos.
Senior YSRCP leader YV Subba Reddy, who chaired the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams in the previous government, denied the allegations as “malicious.”
Also Read | “Time To Constitute Sanatana Dharma Rakshana Board”: Pawan Kalyan Amid Tirupati Laddoo Row
Based on the samples of the ghee used to make the laddoos, a report by NDDB CALF, a Gujarat-based livestock laboratory, revealed the presence of fish oil, beef tallow, and lard (derived from pig fat).
State Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan called for the formation of a ‘Sanatana Dharma Rakshana Board’ at the national level to investigate such issues across temples in the country.
