TIRUPATI: The Tirumala laddu ghee adulteration case has reached the trial stage with the filing of a supplementary chargesheet in FIR No. 476/2024 of Tirupati East Police Station. The chargesheet, running into 670 pages, has been submitted before the court, significantly strengthening the prosecution’s case.
With this development, the court will now begin examining the evidence, documents and witness statements to determine the legal responsibility of those accused in the alleged multi-crore ghee adulteration scam. The case is expected to draw wide attention given its religious, public health and financial implications.
Meanwhile, the CBI-led Special Investigation Team (SIT) has completed its probe into the ghee adulteration allegations linked to the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) laddus.
After nearly 15 months of investigation, the final chargesheet was formally filed before the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) Court in Nellore, Andhra Pradesh.
68 lakh kgs of synthetic or fake ghee
The chargesheet names 36 persons as accused, including officials connected to TTD procurement and representatives of private dairy companies allegedly involved in supplying fake ghee to the temple for making Srivari Laddu Prasadams. The document includes the Supplementary Chargesheet (pages 1–223), Memo of Evidence – Oral (Annexure ‘A’, pages 224–321), Memo of Evidence – Documentary (Annexure ‘B’, pages 322–626), and the List of Material Objects in Form-60 (Annexure ‘C’, pages 627–670). It also contains original witness statements and original documents, strengthening the legal case against the accused.
According to investigators, about 68 lakh kilograms (6.8 million kg) of synthetic or fake ghee, worth nearly Rs 250 crore, was supplied to TTD between 2021 and 2024 through various firms.
The ghee supplied to TTD allegedly contained no genuine dairy fat and was prepared using palm oil, other vegetable oils and chemical additives to imitate real ghee.