Tirupati Ladu Controversy – Bhaskar's Question and Naidu-Reddy's Answer: Chandrababu Said – Goal To Maintain Faith Of Devotees; Jagan said – I belong to a different religion, so try to defame me

The matter of mixing animal fat in the laddu prasad of the Tirupati temple in Andhra has gained momentum. CM Chandrababu Naidu and former CM Jagan Reddy face each other. Bhaskar's M. S. Shankar Both were asked many questions on Saturday.

CM Naidu's question and answer on Ladu issue

Question: The lab report was received on 23rd July, you have disclosed it. Why is this? Chandrababu Naidu: Would it be right to reveal things without concrete evidence? As soon as the complaint was received, samples of laddu and ghee were taken and sent for investigation. Scrutiny of TTD's new EO also confirmed adulteration. After this we conducted vigilance investigation. All the complaints were found to be true and then the disclosure was made.

Question: Allegedly, this revelation gave you political mileage for your 100-day tenure? Chandrababu Naidu: Jagan himself is surrounded by allegations, so he is making baseless allegations. I said only after the report came from every level. If I had acted hastily, without thorough investigation, Jagan would have accused me of acting with ulterior motives. would have proved me a liar.

Question: Is there a controversy over bringing back the Nandini brand? Chandrababu Naidu: This allegation is also baseless. Karnataka's Nandini brand has been supplying ghee for many years. But, questions never arose before. My objective is to maintain the faith of millions of devotees who buy prasad ladles.

Question: Why was the case not filed against the company that played with faith? Chandrababu Naidu: We have already clarified that this matter has nothing to do with politics. A thorough investigation is going on. Whoever is guilty, we will not spare him. Wait a little.

Question: What steps were taken after animal fat adulteration was discovered? Chandrababu Naidu: After a detailed investigation, the EO of TTD terminated the contracts with five suppliers, who were appointed by the previous administration of the board. Strict monitoring, including lab tests, was increased to maintain the purity of the prasadam. This controversy did not start during my tenure, but I took immediate steps to rectify the situation.

Question: Was ghee from all five suppliers tested or only one? Chandrababu Naidu: TTD EO has said that ghee from one out of five companies was found to be adulterated. But, we don't want to risk too much in matters of trust, so we've ended everyone's contracts.

Question and answer with former CM Jagan Reddy

Question: Did your government ask TTD to buy cheap ghee? Jagan: I have never interfered in the day-to-day functioning of TTD. It is only TTD's job to maintain the purity of Prasad, not mine. All organizations faced financial challenges during the Corona period. At that time, the devasthanam itself took decisions to maintain the functioning of the temple. I had no personal involvement in this.

Question: Did TTD fail to maintain the quality of ghee? Jagan: It is not appropriate for me to comment on TTD. YV Subba Reddy and Bhuma Karunakar Reddy, both former chairpersons of the board, have welcomed the probe. He is confident that no mistake has been made in his supervision. The process of checking of ghee tankers, which has been going on for years, has now been done.

Question: Did Naidu resort to religious issue to corner AAP? Jagan: This is not the first time that Naidu has resorted to religion for politics. I belong to a different religion. That is why Naidu and his party are trying to defame me and my family. They also spread lies against my father. But, every time his efforts have failed. This time too it will backfire, because the public knows the truth.

Question: What if the government does not conduct a high-level investigation in this matter? Jagan: My sister has demanded a CBI probe. which is correct. I have also demanded a judicial inquiry, as this is a matter of faith of crores of Hindus. I know that I and my government have not done anything wrong. The tradition and sanctity of the temple is important to us. If our demands are not met, we will decide later what to do next.

Question: There is also an allegation that you did not get the ghee tested? Jagan: The ghee tanker passes three tests before reaching the temple. This is the routine procedure of TTD. When Naidu was CM from 2014 to 2019, ghee tanker samples were rejected 14-15 times after testing. This happened 18 times during my tenure.