Amid the escalating row over the Tirupati Prasadam row, the Supreme Court on Friday ordered an independent SIT probe under the supervision of the CBI Director into the controversy. There are allegations that animal fat was used for preparing Tirupati laddus. The allegations first came from the ruling Telugu Desham Party (TDP). The Bench, which also includes Justice KV Viswanathan, emphasized that it has not delved into the allegations or counter-allegations, stating that it will not permit the Supreme Court to become a political battleground.
A Bench headed by Justice BR Gavai said that the new SIT should comprise two Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) officers, two officers from Andhra Pradesh Police and a senior official of the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI).
The Supreme Court emphasized that its order should not be interpreted as casting doubt on the independence or fairness of the members of the Special Investigation Team (SIT) established by the Andhra Pradesh Police. “We do not want this to turn into a political drama because the sentiments of crores of people across the world are involved. Therefore, if there is an independent body, everybody will have confidence,” it said.
Meanwhile, the Andhra Pradesh Police have temporarily stalled the SIT probe ordered by the state government into the alleged adulteration of Tirupati laddus after the matter came under the top court’s scanner.
During the initial hearing on Monday, the Supreme Court noted that there was, at first glance, no evidence to suggest that animal fat had been used in the preparation of Tirupati laddus during the previous YSRCP government in Andhra Pradesh.
It said Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu should have ‘kept the gods away from politics’ before rushing in to make public statements based on unsure facts that lard was used to prepare the laddus under the previous regime.