Tirupati Row: Lab Report Finds Presence Of 'Beef Tallow' In Ghee Used For Laddoos, Claims TDP

The ghee samples were sent from Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam to National Dairy Development Board in Gujarat for testing.

Telugu Desam Party on Thursday claimed that the adulteration in the making of the Tirumala laddoo 'prasadam' has been confirmed by a Gujarat-based livestock laboratory. This comes amid the ongoing controversy which was triggered after Andhra Pradesh Chief Minsiter Chandrababu Naidu accused the previous YSRCP government of "desecrating" the sacred Tirumala temple by using substandard ingredients and animal fat in the preparation of the laddoos.

TDP spokesperson Anam Venkata Ramana Reddy said in a press conference that the ghee samples were sent from Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam to National Dairy Development Board in Gujarat for testing. He displayed the purpoted lab report from the Centre of Analysis and Learning in Livestock and Food (CALF) and said that it confirmed the presence of beef tallow and fish oil in the ghee used in the making of the famous Tirupati laddoos .

"The lab reports of samples certify that beef tallow and animal fat - lard, and fish oil were used in the preparation of ghee which was supplied to Tirumala and also the S value is only 19.7," he said.

Calling it an "affront to Hindu religion", the TDP spokesperson said that the 'prasadam', which is offered thrice a day to the Lord was mixed with the same ghee.  "We hope that justice will be done and Lord Govind will forgive us for whatever mistakes that have been committed," he added.

CALF (Centre for Analysis and learning in Livestock & Food), the laboratory where the samples were sent, is a multidisciplinary analytical laboratory at NDDB (National Dairy Development Board) based in Gujarat's Anand. The ghee sample receipt date was July 9, 2024 and the lab report was dated July 16.

There has not been any official confirmation on the lab report yet from either the Andhra Pradesh government or the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD), which manages the Sri Venkateswara Swamy temple. 

The opposition Jagan Mohan Reddy-led YSRCP, however, has denied the allegations made by CM Naidu. Reddy's sister and state Congress chief YS Sharmilla called for a CBI probe to verify Naidu's allegations against the party. Senior YSRCP leader B Karunakar Reddy accused the Andhra CM of levelling allegations about the quality of the laddus to gain political advantage.