Tirupati laddu row: CBI rules out animal fat, uncovers ‘synthetic’ ghee usage

The final chargesheet names 36 individuals as accused and this includes nine TTD officials, five dairy experts and others

• CBI chargesheet finds no animal fat in Tirupati laddu ghee from 2019 to 2024
• Ghee was adulterated with vegetable oils and lab esters, not beef tallow or lard
• 36 accused, including TTD officials and dairy experts, named in final chargesheet

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The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has filed its final chargesheet in the Tirupati laddu adulteration case, concluding that no beef tallow or lard was used in the ghee prepared for the laddu prasadam between 2019 and 2024.

The chargesheet was submitted on January 23 before the Anti-Corruption Bureau court in Nellore.

The probe followed allegations made in 2024 by Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu and deputy CM Pawan Kalyan, which led to a debate over claims that the sacred laddu contained “animal fat”. A CBI special investigation team was formed after the Supreme Court intervened in October 2024.

According to the chargesheet, cited in an Indian Express report, the ghee used in the preparation of laddus was adulterated with vegetable oils and laboratory esters used to chemically mimic dairy parameters. No traces of animal fat were found in the ghee.

Reacting to the development, YSRCP leader and former TTD chairman Bhuman Karunakar Reddy accused Chandrababu Naidu and Pawan Kalyan of deliberately hurting Hindu sentiments by making what he termed as false allegations over Lord Venkateswara's prasadam.

Speaking to ANI, Bhuman Karunakar Reddy said that Chadrababu Naidu and Pawan Kalyan falsely claimed that animal fat was mixed into the Tirumala laddu prasadam instead of ghee, with the sole intention of damaging Jagan Mohan Reddy politically.

"These baseless allegations not only aim to malign our leader but also tarnish the sanctity and prestige of Lord Venkateswara. Over 1.4 billion Hindus across the world have been deeply distressed by these false claims for the past one-and-a-half years," he said.

The chargesheet reveals that Bhole Baba Organic Dairy, the main supplier based in Bhagwanpur, Uttarakhand, functioned as a “virtual” manufacturing unit, as per the Indian Express report. Investigators found that the dairy sourced no milk or butter at its facility from 2019 to 2024, yet supplied at least 68 kg of ghee to the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD), which runs the Venkateswara temple. The ghee, produced synthetically without using milk, was estimated to be worth nearly Rs 250 crore.

The final chargesheet names 36 individuals as accused and this includes nine TTD officials, five dairy experts and others.

"The CBI-led SIT final chargesheet has delivered a decisive blow to a politically manufactured falsehood around Tirumala laddu prasadam by the Chandrababu camp," YSRCP leaders RK Roja and M Manohar Reddy said.