Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Nara Chandrababu Naidu’s remark on the use of animal fat in the ‘Laddu Prasadam’ made at the Tirumala shrine has kicked off a controversy and has become a matter of discussion in the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) circles.
At a meeting organised on Wednesday (September 18, 2024) in Vijayawada to celebrate the 100 days of the NDA regime in the State, Mr. Naidu had mentioned about the adulteration of ghee, including the addition of animal fat, used for preparing sacred offerings at the Tirumala temple during the erstwhile YSR Congress regime.
Though the TTD was under constant fire in the past for the poor quality of the holy offerings as well as the food items distributed to the visiting pilgrims, the remark made the Chief Minister on the alleged use of ‘animal fat’ in the ghee has sparked a row.
TTD’s Executive Officer J. Syamala Rao had announced two months back about black-listing of a ghee vendor for having supplied ghee of substandard quality and even announced to file criminal charges.
Of the tender awarded for supply of 8.5 lakh kg, the said company had already supplied 68,000 kg to the TTD, out of which 20,000 kg was found to be ‘substandard’ in quality, as found during the TTD’s lab test. However, it is not clear if the ‘substandard’ quality ghee and the ghee-laced with animal fat are from the same company.
Former chairpersons react
On the other hand, YSR Congress Party’s senior leaders Y.V. Subba Reddy and Bhumana Karunakar Reddy, who had served as the successive Chairpersons of the TTD trust board during the previous regime, reacted sharply to Mr. Naidu’s criticism and accused him of playing ‘dirty politics’ with the Tirumala shrine.
“Chandrababu Naidu has severely damaged the sanctity of Tirumala and the faith of crores of Hindus. His comments are extremely malicious. No person would speak such words or make such accusations”, Mr. Subba Reddy said. While volunteering to swear along with his family members before the deity of Sri Venkateswara, he sought to know if Mr. Naidu would do so.
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Mr. Karunakar Reddy said the Lord of Seven Hills would not excuse those making such wild allegations with mala fide intentions. “The Tirumala Prasadams are made by persons belonging to the Srivaishnava clan, and as such, the officers or the trust board members have no say in that”, he insisted, adding that the remarks were ‘an attack on the entire Hindu community’.
Though there was a guarded reaction from the ruling Telugu Desam Party (TDP) circles, senior party leaders indicated that their leader’s serious comment could not be brushed away as an ‘off-the-cuff’ remark in view of its far-reaching implications.
However, there is no official reaction from the TTD management on the charges levelled by the Chief Minister.
BJP, Congress demand probe
Meanwhile, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) state spokesperson G. Bhanuprakash Reddy demanded a full-fledged probe into the charges. Dubbing the Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy government as ‘blatantly anti-Hindu’ and having no respect for their religious sentiments, he said the charges should be followed up by an inquiry.
At a media conference on Thursday (September 19, 2024), he accused the previous government of trying to divert ₹5000 crore from the TTD’s exchequer, nominating people with criminal charges on the TTD trust board and also converting the TTD’s ‘Padmavati Nilayam’ pilgrim amenities complex at Tiruchanur into the district Collectorate building.
“They even tried to form a jumbo trust board for TTD with 81 members against the rules and had to keep 51 of them in abeyance after we moved the court. All these show the then government’s scant respect for the Tirumala shrine”, Mr. Reddy pointed out.
Attributing the possibility of adulteration to the allocation of ghee supply tenders to areas away from the cow belt, the BJP leader demanded allotment of tenders to farmers’ cooperative societies in the cow belt comprising Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.
“The present expert committee meant to check the quality of ghee and other ingredients supplied to the TTD was formed 9.5 years back and still remains unchanged. We demand that a new committee be formed under the guidance of National Dairy Development Board (NDDB)”, Mr. Bhanuprakash Reddy said.
Similarly, Congress state Vice-President Doddareddy Rambhupal Reddy demanded the NDA government to initiate CBI investigation into the charges made by Mr. Naidu. “Mr. Naidu’s comments are serious in nature. If he stands by his allegations, we demand him to get the same probed by the CBI”.
Published - September 19, 2024 02:55 pm IST