The ongoing controversy over Tirupati temple prasad has taken a new turn. On September 20, Acharya Satyendra Das, chief priest of the Ayodhya temple, said that Tirupati temple prasad was distributed among the devotees at the Ram temple in Ayodhya earlier this year. Recently citing a lab test report, it was said that beef fat and fish oil were used in the ghee used in the Tirupati temple prasad ladoo.
According to a report by news agency PTI, chief priest Satyendra Das confirmed that 1 lakh laddus, estimated at 300 kg of 'prasad', were given to devotees from the Tirupati temple during the Ram Mandir pranapratistha ceremony in January.
Politics over Prasad
His comments come amid a controversy over the alleged use of animal fat in Tirupati laddu prasadam. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has courted controversy by claiming that animal fat was used in Tirupati's ladoo during the previous government's tenure.
The opposition YSRCP accused Naidu of making “heinous allegations” for political gain, while Naidu's TDP published a lab report to back the claim.
Prasad of Tirupati sent to Ayodhya in Pran Pratishtha
The priest of the Ram temple expressed his displeasure
On Friday, the head priest of the Ayodhya temple expressed displeasure over the presence of animal fat in the ghee used to prepare the 'prasad' (laddu) of the Sri Venkateswara Swamy temple in Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh.
PTI accused Das of saying, “If the prasad contains animal fat, it is a crime.” Strict action should be taken against those involved. Das said, this is Khilwad with Hindu faith. He demanded an inquiry into the matter and demanded strict action against the culprits.
Hand over temple management to Hindu community: VHP
Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) also reacted strongly to these allegations. In which the Andhra Pradesh government demanded to hand over the control and management of the temple to the Hindu community.
VHP General Secretary Bajrang Bagra also advocated “freeing” all temples and other Hindu religious places across the country from government control and demanded legal action against those involved in the desecration of Tirupati Ladu Prasadam.
Know the opinion of the saints of Ayodhya in the midst of allegations and politics in this matter…
Acharya Satyendra Das, the chief worshiper of the Ram temple, said – 1 lakh laddus of Tirupati were brought to Ayodhya from Andhra Pradesh. The TTD delegation brought these laddus packed in a big box. This prasad was distributed to Ram devotees. If animal fat was added to it, it could not be forgiven. Strict action should be taken against such people.
How did this controversy come up…
The Karnataka Cooperative Milk Federation (KMF) had been supplying ghee to the Trust at subsidized rates for the past 50 years. The temple consumes 1400 tonnes of ghee every six months. In July 2023, the company refused to supply at lower rates, after which the Jagan government (YSRCP) awarded the supply work to 5 companies. One of these is AR Dairy Foods based in Dindigul, Tamil Nadu, whose product was found to be defective in July this year.
CM Naidu accused of mixing animal fat in ghee
Chief Minister Naidu also made a statement again on the ghee issue. Speaking at a meeting in Prakasam district, Naidu said that when ghee was available in the market at Rs 500 per kg, the Jagan government bought ghee at Rs 320 per kg. In such a case the ghee must have been adulterated by the supplier. There will be an inquiry into the purchase of low-priced ghee by the Jagan government. The sanctity of the Tirupati temple has been tarnished by laddus made from animal fat ghee.
CM Naidu had alleged on September 18 that animal fat and fish oil were mixed in the ghee used for laddus in the Tirupati temple during the former Jagan government. The TDP has also claimed to confirm its allegations by showing the lab report.
A case has been registered against former Chief Minister Jagan Reddy
A case has been registered against former Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh YS Jagan Mohan Reddy and others. He has been accused of damaging the sanctity of the Sri Venkateswara Swamy temple and hurting Hindu religious sentiments following allegations of adulteration of ghee used in the famous Tirupati Ladoo Prasadam. A lawyer has filed this complaint at the Saidabad Police Station in Hyderabad.
Amid the controversy over the sanctity of the ladoo at the Sri Venkateswara Swamy temple (Tirupati temple) in Andhra Pradesh, the temple management Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD) said that the prasadam is now completely pure and holy. We are committed to continue to do so.
TDP govt came, sample test done in July, fate confirmed
The TDP government appointed senior IAS officer J Shyamala Rao as the new executive officer of Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) in June 2024.
He ordered to check the quality of prasadam. A committee was formed for this. The committee made several suggestions to improve the taste and quality of prasad and a sample of ghee was sent to the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB), Gujarat for testing. Fate was mentioned in a report that came out in July.
After this TTD returned the stock of ghee sent by AR Dairy Foods based in Dindigul, Tamil Nadu and blacklisted the contractor. After this TTD started procuring ghee from Karnataka Milk Federation.
Ghee was purchased from the old supplier at Rs 320 per kg. While Tirupati Trust is now buying ghee from Karnataka Cooperative Milk Federation (KMF) at Rs 475 per kg.
NDDB Kolf, a ghee purity testing laboratory, has agreed to donate a machine to Tirupati to test the purity of ghee. Its price is 75 lakh rupees.
Image Credit: (Divya-Bhaskar): Images/graphics belong to (Divya-Bhaskar).
