GUWAHATI: The Supreme Court of India on Monday, September 30 condemned the public statements made by Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu when he alleged adulterated use of ghee in making laddus as prasadam at Tirumala Tirupati Temple. It questioned whether such comments were appropriate at this point when an investigation was going on and the preliminary lab reports highlighted that the ghee samples tested were rejected.
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Justices B.R. Gavai and K.V. Viswanathan are hearing pleas for a court-monitored investigation in the row over Tirupati laddus. The court asked Solicitor General Tushar Mehta to consult with the Centre whether a central investigation is required and slated the next date for this Thursday.
"The petition pertains to sentiments affecting crores of people living in the entire world. The Hon'ble Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh had gone in public making a statement that the animal fat was being used to make Tirupati laddus under the previous regime. However, some press reports also show that the Chief Executive Officer of the Tirupati Tirumala Devasthanam had also made a statement that such an adulterated ghee was never used." the bench said.
Senior advocate Siddharth Luthra for TTD clarified that ghee supplied till July 4 had not been analyzed on adulteration whereas the samples received on July 6 and July 12 were found to be adulterated. It was essential to observe that it was the investigation by the Andhra Pradesh government that eventually led to the setting up of an SIT with an FIR dated September 25. The court also added that Naidu's statements were issued way ahead of the SIT coming into place and condemned high-ranking officials to pass any comment until an investigation is taken to its logical conclusion.
Adding to the complexity of the matter, Senior Advocate Mukul Rohatgi argued that petitions before the SC were not bona fide and were filed to essentially to support previous YSRCP government. Moreover, Rohatgi said that the petition filed by Swamy and the ex-TTD Chairman YV Subba Reddy were identical.
This scandal broke out when the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh released a lab report stating that the samples of ghee made by the previous government contain foreign fats with beef fat and fish oil. The former chief minister, Jagan Mohan Reddy, denies it as "diversion politics." Growing more apprehensive, several petitions have been filed to seek relief, including demands for increased accountability from the Hindu temples being run by the government.