YS Jagan Reddy reacts to Tirupati laddus row: ‘Ghee adulteration charges to divert attention from…’

Jagan Reddy

Former Andhra Pradesh chief minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy on September 20 dismissed the ruling Telugu Desam Party (TDP)’s charges of the presence of animal fats and fish oil in laddus prepared at the famous Tirupati temple. He stated that no violation happened under his government and that the entire controversy in unwarranted.

Hitting out at the current chief minister of the state, Reddy said that he is such a person who can use god also for political gains. According to the former chief minister, Naidu's allegations of ghee adulteration in Tirupati prasadam laddoos are a calculated attempt to deflect attention from his 100 days of governance in Andhra Pradesh.

"This is a diversion politics. On one hand, people are expressing their anger at Chandrababu Naidu's hundred days rule. They are demanding what happened to their "Super six" (poll promises). In order to divert people's attention, this concocted story," he said.

"The tender process occurs every six months, and the qualification criteria has not changed for decades. Suppliers must provide an NABL certificate and a product quality certificate. TTD collects samples from the ghee, and only products that pass certification are used. TDP is politicising religious matters. We have rejected the products in our regime 18 times," the former chief minister added.

Reddy said he will be writing  to the Prime Minister. "I am also writing a letter to the Chief Justice of India. I am explaining to them as to how Chandrababu Naidu twisted the facts and why action should be taken against him for having done so..." said the former CM.

Naidu has claimed that animal fat was used for making Tirupati laddus during the previous Jagan Mohan Reddy government, thereby initiating a massive row. TDP spokesperson Anam Venkata Ramana Reddy had on Thursday claimed that adulteration was confirmed by a Gujarat-based livestock laboratory in ghee samples provided by the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD), which manages the famous Sri Venkateswara Swamy temple.

He showed the purported lab report, which apparently confirmed the presence of "beef tallow", "lard" and "fish oil" in the sample.

Amid a controversy over the same, Union health minister JP Nadda said he had spoken to Naidu and sought a report on the Tirupati laddu issue. "I have asked him (Naidu) to share the available report so that I can examine it. I will also speak to the state regulators and investigate this. Suitable action will be taken as per the food safety standards," he said while addressing a press conference on the first 100 days of the Modi government's third term.