The plea was submitted by social activist K A Paul, who is the President of the ‘Global Peace Initiative’ organization.
The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) that sought a Central Bureau of India (CBI) investigation into the allegations of usage of animal fat in the preparation of the sacred Tirupati laddus under the previous government led by YS Jagan Mohan Reddy.
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The plea was submitted by social activist K A Paul, who is the President of the ‘Global Peace Initiative’ organization. The plea was rejected by a bench consisting of Justices BR Gavai and K V Vishwanathan. The bench stated, ”Going by your prayer, we will have to build separate states for all temples, gurudwaras, etc. We can’t direct that a separate state be created for a particular matter. Dismissed.”
In his plea, Paul appealed for a comprehensive investigation by the CBI into claims of corruption and mismanagement in connection to the procurement and preparation of Laddu Prasadam, PTI reported.
The Supreme Court had taken steps on October 4 to address the issues of using animal fat in Tirupati laddus. The court directed to form an independent five-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe these allegations and asserted that the court cannot become a ”political battleground.” The SIT team comprises two officials each from the CBI and the Andhra Pradesh Police as well as a senior official from the Food Safety and Standard Authority of India (FSSAI).
Communal Tension
The PIL highlighted the increasing communal tensions and the alleged violation of fundamental religious rights, citing Article 25 of the Constitution which guarantees freedom of religion. Paul pointed out that while preparing the ‘Laddu Prasadam’, low-standard ingredients and adulterated ghee were used, which raised major concerns among the devotees and affected the sanctity of the sacred offering.
He further claimed that the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) is one of the biggest Hindu pilgrimage sites globally. Any compromise on its piousness will directly impact millions of devotees and will damage the reputation of the institution.
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Tirupati Laddu row
The controversy came to light when Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu claimed that the previous government led by Jagan Mohan Reddy used animal fat in the making of the laddus. The claim created political chaos, as the YSR Congress Party blamed Naidu for using ”heinous allegations” just for political gain.
The ruling Telugu Desam Party also disseminated a laboratory report to prove their claims.
(With inputs from PTI)
