Nara Lokesh Wades Into Tirupati Laddoo Controversy Again
Hyderabad: On January 30, Nara Lokesh, Andhra Pradesh's education and information technology minister, addressed a Telugu Desam Party (TDP) meeting in Kakinada, asserting that “Page 35” of the final Central Bureau of Investigation chargesheet establishes that animal fat was used in the preparation of the laddu offerings of the Tirupati temple. This follows a similar claim made by his father, Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, back in 2024.
However, an examination of the document that the CBI filed before the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) Court in Nellore reveals that the investigation concluded that the adulterant was a synthetic mixture of vegetable oils and chemical esters, not beef tallow or lard.
Lokesh’s assertion appears to rely on a misinterpretation of the chargesheet’s structure. Page 35, cited by him, falls under the section detailing ‘Brief Facts’ – a summary of the initial allegations and preliminary complaints filed in July 2024. This section outlines the suspicions that triggered the probe, not the scientific conclusions reached after the investigation.
Findings on pages 209-211
The final forensic verdict is detailed later in the document, specifically on pages 209 through 211. Here, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) explicitly rules out the animal fat theory that sparked a political firestorm in 2024.
The National Dairy Research Institute (NDRI) report, cited on Page 210, states that lard was “not detected in any of the four samples.” Similarly, the forensic analysis by the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) on Page 209 concludes that "the possibility for presence of fat from Animal origin (Ghee, Tallow, Lard or Fish oil) appears very less."
Synthetic, not animal
Instead of the rendered fat of cows or pigs, the investigation uncovers a sophisticated case of chemical adulteration. The Final Conclusion on Page 211 identifies the contaminants as a base of Refined Palm Oil, Palm Kernel Oil, and Palmolein. The NDDB analysis further specifies the mixture contained "Palm oil and/or Palm stearin."
To this vegetable base, the syndicate added Acetic Acid Esters supplied by a Delhi-based trader to artificially spike the Reichert-Meissl (RM) value, fooling standard quality control tests. The syndicate also utilised Beta Carotene to replicate the golden hue of cow ghee. The report concludes the adulteration involved a “virtual” manufacturing unit run by Bhole Baba Organic Dairy in Uttarakhand, which supplied 68 lakh kg of synthetic ghee worth Rs 250 crore without processing a single litre of milk.
Tankers versus laddus
Furthermore, the minister’s claim that tests were conducted on “laddu samples” is factually incorrect.
The text on Page 35 refers to samples drawn from “2 tankers on 06.07.2024 and 2 tankers on 12.07.2024.” These were samples of the liquid ghee intercepted before use, not the finished prasadam or sacred offering. The forensic analysis focuses on this raw supply chain.
While the final chargesheet validates allegations of adulteration, massive fraud and negligence, it does not support the specific claim regarding the use of animal byproducts in the laddus.
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