The ghee keeping Andhra on the boil

The alleged adulteration of the ghee used for the laddu prasadam at the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) has been in the news for more than a year for all the wrong reasons.

The controversy began in September 2024 when Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu alleged that adulterated ghee, laced with animal fat including beef tallow, had been supplied to the temple during the previous YSRCP regime. The charge triggered outrage.

In October 2024, the YSRCP approached the Supreme Court, seeking a probe. The Court constituted a Special Investigation Team (STI) headed by the Central Bureau of Investigation, with members from the State police and the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI). After 15 months, the SIT filed its final supplementary charge sheet in mid-January 2026 before the Anti-Corruption Bureau Court in Nellore.

The contents of the charge sheet appear to have unsettled the NDA, as certain ingredients reportedly identified in samples tested by the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) were not mentioned in the document. On the other hand, the YSRCP was quick to claim vindication, with some leaders projecting the SIT findings as a “clean chit” to the previous regime led by Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy.

Yet, the SIT report was far from exculpatory. It confirmed adulteration and went so far as to state that the product supplied was not ghee at all, but a sludge concocted by mixing palm oil and synthetic substances, along with chemicals allegedly hazardous to human health, to replicate the texture and aroma of ghee. Leaders of the NDA held a press conference to counter the Opposition’s narrative.

The controversy spilled into the Legislative Council, where the YSRCP used its numerical strength to stall proceedings. It also dragged Heritage Foods, owned by Mr. Naidu’s family, into the controversy, alleging that it had attempted to benefit from the ghee supply contract.

Stripped of political rhetoric, however, the SIT’s findings are shocking. The NDDB’s Centre for Analysis and Learning in Livestock and Food at Anand, Gujarat, tested samples from four tankers supplied by one of the accused dairies. The low levels of butyric acid indicated a “very low” presence of milk fat, while the detection of lauric and myristic acids suggested the presence of coconut oil or palm kernel oil. The investigation concluded that several private dairies had colluded with officials in the TTD’s procurement wing and with external experts engaged to inspect processing units. Some dairies allegedly submitted fabricated documents to secure eligibility. Procurement records showed purchases of palm kernel oil, refined palm oil, food-grade lactic acid, acetic acid ester, monoglycerides, beta carotene and artificial ghee flavour — all with the apparent intention of manufacturing a “ghee-like” substance. The accused dairies had not procured any milk, yet managed to supply the concoction as ghee.

This is clearly a case of corruption, breach of trust, and collusion. The only direct political link cited in the charge sheet is Kaduru Chinna Appanna, who served as personal assistant to the then TTD Trust Board Chairman.

Neither side can claim moral triumph. The YSRCP asserts that it has been cleared of the gravest allegation — the presence of animal fat — and points out that none of its former TTD chairpersons has been named in the charge sheet. Yet it cannot evade accountability for the procurement of some 58 lakh kgs of fake ghee during its tenure.

Meanwhile, the NDA insists that corruption has been exposed. However, the absence of any reference to animal fat places it in an uncomfortable position. Also, its claim that policy changes under the YSRCP regime enabled dubious suppliers appears weak, since some of the same dairies operated during the earlier TDP government.

A one-man committee has now been appointed to examine the administrative lapses and procedural loopholes highlighted in the SIT’s note to the State government. While the law must take its course, attempts to weaponise the controversy are disquieting. This is a case of blatant corruption, and most important, a matter of public health. Millions who have the Tirumala laddu as prasadam deserve answers. While institutions managing temple trusts must be insulated from political crossfire, the institutions themselves must be stringent about quality control.