Tirupati Laddu Row: Supreme Court Forms SIT, CBI to Monitor Probe

Tirupati Laddu Row: Supreme Court Forms SIT, CBI to Monitor Probe

The Supreme Court on Friday formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe allegations regarding the use of substandard ghee containing animal fat in the preparation of Tirupati laddus. The team will include members from the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), state police, and the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI). The Court emphasized that these allegations have the potential to hurt religious sentiments globally.

A bench comprising Justices BR Gavai and KV Viswanathan announced that the investigation would be conducted under the supervision of the CBI director. “To address the feelings of millions of devotees, we believe an independent investigation by a SIT, including representatives from the CBI, state police, and FSSAI, is necessary,” the court stated.

However, the court clarified that this order should not be seen as a reflection on the integrity of the state-formed SIT but was done to prevent the hurt sentiments of devotees from escalating. The court refrained from commenting on the merits of the allegations, stating that it would not allow the case to become a political battleground.

Tirupati Laddu Row: What Happened in the Previous Hearing?

The controversy began last month when Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, citing a lab report, alleged that animal fat and fish oil were found in the ghee used to make the laddus during the previous YSRCP regime.

In the previous hearing, the Supreme Court criticized the Chief Minister for making these claims public without conclusive proof. The court pointed out that the lab report indicated impurities in ghee samples that had already been rejected, but no conclusive evidence supported the use of animal fat in the laddu preparation.

Following the court’s remarks, the SIT formed by the state government halted its investigation earlier this week.

Aakhir Tak Editor-in-Chief

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