A Special Investigation Team (SIT) appointed by the Supreme Court has found serious lapses in the supply of ghee used for preparing the Tirumala Tirupati laddu prasadam between 2019 and 2024.

In an 11-page report submitted to the Andhra Pradesh government, the SIT said that tender rules for procuring ghee were deliberately diluted without proper study, expert opinion, or valid justification. This allowed unqualified private suppliers to enter the process and compromised the quality of the sacred prasadam.

The report noted that strict tender conditions introduced in August 2019 were relaxed in 2020. Key eligibility norms such as minimum turnover, dairy experience, milk procurement, and processing capacity were reduced. Senior Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) officials, including former Executive Officer Anil Kumar Singhal, former Financial Adviser and Chief Accounts Officer O. Balaji, and former Additional EO A.V. Dharmareddy, were held responsible for approving these changes without proper scrutiny.

The SIT said the TTD Purchase Committee recommended the relaxed norms, which were later approved by the TTD Board in February 2020. This resulted in established cooperative dairies being sidelined, while private dairies with limited capacity secured contracts.

The report also revealed that in May 2022, ghee samples were sent to the Central Food Technological Research Institute (CFTRI) following complaints. CFTRI confirmed adulteration in supplies from Vyshnavi Dairy and Bhole Baba Dairy. However, the SIT found that these findings were ignored and no action was taken at the time.

The SIT has recommended legal and disciplinary action against the officials and committee members involved.

Following the report, Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu transferred former EO Anil Kumar Singhal and said further action would be taken. The state government has assured a fair and transparent investigation.

Meanwhile, State Finance Minister Payyavula Keshav accused the previous YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) government of suppressing the 2022 CFTRI report. He said tests conducted in August 2022 detected chemicals such as beta-sitosterol in the ghee, indicating adulteration, but the report was ignored and no corrective steps were taken until 2024.

Keshav alleged that the failure to act allowed adulterated ghee to continue being used in the Tirumala laddu prasadam during the YSRCP regime