Hindus duped into eating beef fat: Author Anand Ranganathan on Tirupati laddoos row

Anand Ranganathan criticised the Andhra Pradesh government over claims that beef fat was used in Tirupati temple laddus during YS Jagan Mohan Reddy's rule.

In Short

• Anand Ranganathan says no legal action or outrage over the issue
• Compares potential outrage if pork oil was used in Iftaar party
• Lab report confirms presence of animal fats in ghee used for prasadam

Author Anand Ranganathan on Thursday lashed out at the Andhra Pradesh administration after Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu's TDP released a lab report stating beef fat was used in laddoos distributed at the the famous Sri Venkateswara temple in Tirupati when YS Jagan Mohan Reddy's YSRCP was in power in the state.

Speaking to India Today TV, Ranganathan expressed his outrage, claiming that millions of Hindu devotees had unknowingly consumed beef fat at the temple, a site held in the highest regard by the Hindu community. He raised concerns over the lack of legal action or public outcry regarding the issue.

"This is calamitous. Tens of thousands, perhaps even millions, of Hindu devotees have been deceived into consuming beef fat at one of the most sacred Hindu temples, which is managed by the state. And yet, no arrests have been made, no outrage has erupted," he said.

Furthermore, the author, known for his sharp political commentary, said that there would have been a civil war in the country if hakim served during a state-sponsored Iftaar party, had been prepared using pork oil.

"Imagine, had halim served during a state-sponsored Iftaar party been cooked in pork oil. This country would have witnessed a civil war. But then, this is the country where the holiest Hindu shrine was demolished by an Islamic invader. This is a country where ministers openly wish to eradicate Sanatana Dharma and call Hinduism a menace of the world," Ranganathan said.

He also alleged out that Hindus are easy to abuse because they do not behead transgressors.

"The irony is India has been branded as a Hindu rashtra. I want to ask what sort of Hindu rashtra this is where communists are controlling Hindu temples. Let there be no doubt that this calamity has happened because the state intervened even in the preparation of temple prasadam. Contracts were made and tenders were given," Ranganathan added.

A political controversy broke out on Thursday after Naidu claimed that the previous YS Jagan Mohan Reddy-led government did not even spare Sri Venkateswara Swamy temple in Tirupati and used substandard ingredients and animal fat for making laddus.

A lab report, a copy of which was shared by TDP spokesperson Anam Venkata Ramana Reddy, confirmed the presence of "beef tallow", “Lard” and “Fish Oil” in the given ghee sample used to make prasadam at the temple.

The TDP said that the adulteration has been confirmed by a Gujarat-based livestock laboratory, on the ghee samples provided by the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD), which manages the famous Sri Venkateswara Swamy temple.