Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu claimed that “bathroom cleaning chemicals” were used to adulterate the ghee meant for making of laddu prasadam at Tirupati Tirumala Devasthanams (TTD) during the YSR Congress Party’s rule in the state.
While addressing the public event named “Mee Bhoomi–Mee Hakku” in Kurnool district, Naidu emphasized that the ghee supplied to the TTD had been adulterated with several chemicals, according to the report submitted by the CBI-led special investigation team that investigated the matter.
CM Naidu said, “The SIT report clearly mentioned that the ghee supplier to the TTD had procured various chemicals, including the one which is typically used for cleaning bathrooms and used them in the adulteration of ghee.”
He further alleged that YSRCP leaders were attempting to mislead the public by asserting that the ghee used in Tirupati laddus contained no animal fat.
Naidu also claimed that during the previous YSRCP government, adulterated ghee was supplied to the Srisailam temple for prasadam preparation and to other major temples across the state.
His statement followed allegations by YSR Congress Party leaders that he had “lied” about the Tirupati ghee being contaminated with beef tallow and lard. The CBI chargesheet, however, noted that while tallow and lard were absent, the ghee had been adulterated with plant oils and chemicals.
The Tirupati prasadam is alleged to have been adulterated between 2019 and 2024, during the tenure of the YSR Congress Party government under Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy.
In its statement said, Telugu Desam Party said, “The latest revelations from the official chargesheet have sparked fresh outrage and deep anguish among devotees Tirupati laddu, exposing the horrifying truth that a toilet cleaning chemical was used to adulterate the sacred Tirupati Laddu.”
Andhra’s Home Minister Vangalapudi Anitha also criticised the YSRCP, saying the opposition is lying vis a vis Tirumala ghee adulteration issue.
She said, “Not one but four separate reports – from CFTRI, NDDB, NTCSI and the SIT – had confirmed adulteration of ghee used in the Tirumala laddu.”
The Home Minister claimed that a chemical called “LABSA” (Linear Alkyl Benzene Sulphonic Acid), commonly used for toilet cleaning, was used in the adulteration, calling it a serious act of sacrilege.
Meanwhile, the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) retaliated by claiming that the TDP and its chief, CM Naidu, were attempting to stir communal tensions for political advantage.
Former Andhra CM and YSRCP supremo, Jagan Mohan Reddy said that the party will reach out all possible channels, including the Supreme Court and the National Human Right Commission (NHRC), to expose the “jungle raj” of the coalition government at national level and to challenge the “misleading propaganda” surrounding the Tirupati laddu controversy.
Quoting the CBI investigation, Reddy said that the CBI, upon concluding its investigation, submitted a chargesheet confirming that the ghee used in the laddu contained no animal fat.
He further added, “Chandrababu Naidu has been dragging God into politics, and he, along with his son Lokesh and Pawan Kalyan, has been using God for selfish and political gains.”
The chargesheet, backed by findings from two central laboratories, does not name any individuals linked to the YSRCP.
