Tirumala, the internationally renowned Hindu pilgrimage, became familiar during both Dr YS Rajasekhar Reddy and his son YS Jaganmohan Reddy regimes for wrong reasons. The sanctity and sacredness of the temple was put in question. It became notorious for appointing people of other faiths and also non-believers in key positions, besides those promoting religious conversions.
Soon after becoming Chief Minister of the state for the fourth time, N Chandrababu Naidu first visited this destination and declared that his `cleaning of administration’ from the mischievous and irregular deeds of the previous regime will start from here. Already a vigilance enquiry is going on the irregularities committed during the previous regime and several reforms are being introduced.
At this juncture, Chandrababu Naidu revealed another controversy on Wednesday by alleging that the YCP regime between 2019 and 2024 used animal fats to prepare the highly revered Tirupati Laddu prasadam.
He alleged that the Lord Venkateswara Swamy temple at Tirumala is the most sacred temple and he was shocked to learn that the Jagan’s administration used animal fat instead of ghee in the Tirupati Prasadam. He said shame on Jagan and the YCP government that couldn’t respect the religious sentiments of crores of devotees.
However, refuting the allegation, the YP reacted sharply to Naidu’s accusations and said Chandrababu Naidu committed a great sin by damaging the sanctity of the divine temple Tirumala and the faith of hundreds of crores of Hindus.
It should be noted that the iconic Laddu prasadam faced scrutiny and controversy during the YCP regime with the TDP frequently criticizing its alleged severe compromise in quality.
Recently, the TTD conducted an in-house assessment in consultation with dairy experts and discovered that quality ghee plays a major role in determining the taste of ‘Srivari laddus’. Moreover, the TTD recently established a new sensory perception laboratory and is training its staff at a quality training institute in Mysore.
