The adulteration of prasadurs in the world-famous Tirupati Balaji temple in Andhra Pradesh has caused outrage across the country. A political-religious war has broken out following reports of adulteration of Lord Tirupati Balaji’s prasad, the centre of devotion for crores of sanathan lovers. The situation is such that there have been calls for death penalty and even a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the case. In fact, the controversy continues after the government of Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu’s predecessor, Jaganmohan Reddy, was accused of mixing fish oil and animal fat instead of ghee in the temple’s prasad.
Meanwhile, YSR Congress president and former Andhra Pradesh chief minister Jagan Mohan Reddy hit back at Naidu, saying Chandrababu Naidu was doing politics in the name of God to cover up the failure of his government in the last 100 days as all his allegations were baseless. Now, there is resentment among saints across the country over this matter. Saints said they will not tolerate playing with faith.
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu has claimed that animal fat and fish oil were used in the prasad offered at the Tirupati Balaji temple during the previous Jaganmohan government. This was also confirmed in the samples of prasad collected in July. Naidu said the Jaganmohan government took advantage of the faith of crores of Hindus. He said that after my government came to power, this was banned. The report that has just come out is the sample of prasad collected in July.
Also read: ‘The news of blasphemous Prasad is disturbing’, Rahul Gandhi’s statement on Tirupati Laddu controversy
Sampling on June 12
In fact, as soon as there was a change in the Andhra Pradesh government on June 12, samples of ghee used in offerings at the Tirupati temple were tested. The report of the inquiry was ready on June 23, but the news was revealed in September when the Naidu government completed 100 days. In the report that came out, what was found in the ghee used to make laddus, it was said, was not pure cow ghee but could contain other oilseeds and vegetables along with fish oil and fats from other animals. The investigation was conducted at the Centre for Analysis and Learning of Animal Husbandry and Food or CALF laboratory of the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB).
Domestic political movement begins
The question is about the game of faith. The devotion of these devotees has made the Tirupati Balaji Temple one of the richest temples in the world. These devotees not only carry Prasad with them but also receive blessings from God in the form of Prasad. Therefore, this news is directly relevant to crores of devotees. In this case, the question is who is responsible for playing with their faith? The question is who has adulterated the holy offerings of the Tirupati Balaji Temple and why? Currently, the news of the felony of Prasad has triggered a religious war in the country’s political arena. In this case, people are also raising questions, is the fat claim of Prasad true or a trap?
Demands range from CBI investigation to hanging
Reports about the adulteration of Mahaprasad are raining down. Meanwhile, Union Health Minister JP Nadda spoke to Andhra Pradesh CM Chandrababu Naidu on phone and demanded the report of Prasad. Moreover, JP Nadda also assured to take action after investigation. But after the incident came to light, Sanatanis across the country are furious. An application is being filed in the Supreme Court. Union Minister Giriraj Singh has even demanded death penalty for the culprits. Meanwhile, Congress has asked PM Naidu why he did not reveal the matter for three months. Now Congress has demanded a CBI probe. The question is, was the quality and purity of Prasad compromised while giving the contract to the ghee supply company or was the animal fat issue of Prasad just hyped for political gains and losses?
Also read: What is the truth about ‘animal fat’ in Tirupati Laddus? Under what circumstances can a Prasad sample report be wrong
The report said that in some cases, the test results may also be false positive. These are those cases –
– If the sample is from milk from a very weak cow
– If milk samples are collected immediately from calving cows
– If milk from other animals is mixed with cow’s milk
– If more sesame and oil seeds are added to the cow’s milk
– If the cow is sick or any chemical is given to the cow
300,000 laddus are prepared every day in the temple
Here are some statues associated with the Tirupati Balaji Temple that might surprise you. More than 3 lakh laddus are prepared every day at the Tirupati Balaji Temple. The Balaji Temple Trust earns Rs 500 crore every year from Prasad. More than 50,000 devotees visit the temple every day. The Tirupati Balaji Temple is the richest temple in India and one of the richest temples in the world. The total assets of the temple are worth Rs 300 crore. This is more than the assets of many multinational companies. The Balaji Temple earns Rs 1400 crore in revenue every year from Hundi.
Rs 18 crore temple deposited in bank
In 2023 alone, a thousand gold pieces weighing 31 kg and worth Rs 773 crore were offered to Lord Venkatesh. Not only this, the Balaji temple has 11,329 kg of gold deposited in banks. Meanwhile, a fixed deposit of Rs 13,287 crore has been deposited in the name of the temple. As of April 2024, Rs 18,000 crore (Rs 817 crore) has been deposited in banks in the name of the temple. The TTD Trust Board has approved a total budget of Rs 5,000 crore (Rs 141.74 crore) for 2024-2025. This is the first time that the temple’s annual budget has crossed the Rs 5,000 crore mark.
Also read: Fruits, vegetables, honey…testing everything, the story of the Gujarat lab whose report casts doubt on Tirupati’s Prasad.
How are ghee suppliers selected?
A small boat floats on the water to supply ghee to the temple. A former TTD executive claimed that the contract had been given to the lowest bidder. However, senior officials of the temple administration claimed that the trust factory itself has 550 desi cows for supplying pure desi ghee. Not only that, there is a system for testing the ghee that enters the temple. The temple trust has been checking the quality of ghee with the help of the CFTRI laboratory in Mysuru.
Ghee supply company cleared
The Karnataka Milk Federation, which has been supplying pure ghee, clarified that it has been supplying ghee since July. The name of the alleged supplier in this case is AR Dairy Products Limited. The company said it is ready for investigation. Four truckloads of ghee were delivered without any complaints. The fifth truck was stopped. The temple administration said that punitive action has now been taken against the company and it has been blacklisted.
A small boat floats on the water to supply ghee to the temple. The former executive officer of TTD claimed that the contract had been given to the lowest bidder. However, officials of the old temple administration claimed that 550 desi cows were reared in the trust factory for supplying pure desi ghee. Not only that, there was a system to check the ghee entering the temple. TTD checked the quality of ghee with the help of CFTRI laboratory in Mysuru.
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