By ordering a fresh investigation, to be monitored by the CBI, into the Tirupati Laddu row, the Supreme Court has sought to strike a delicate balance between competing political narratives.
The apex court has avoided taking any sides. Instead, it has ordered an independent probe by a five-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) into the allegations of adulteration of cow ghee that goes into the making of the sacred Tirupati laddu.
The probe team will have two officers each from the CBI and the Andhra Pradesh police and a senior officer from the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), a central government agency.
The court’s order has effectively superseded the SIT formed earlier by the state government. However, the SC bench, comprising Justices BR Gavai and KV Viswanathan, made it clear that the constitution of an independent SIT was not a reflection of the ‘independence and fairness’ of the state police.
The court has rightly pointed out that its order for a CBI-monitored probe was aimed at assuaging the sentiments of crores of people who are deeply hurt over the reports that the ghee, contaminated with animal fat, made its way in the preparation of laddu.
For millions of Hindus, the Tirupati laddus are not just a sweet delicacy but a manifestation of their abiding devotion to Lord Venkateswara. Any suggestion that the sacred prasadam has been tainted with animal products is bound to evoke strong emotional reactions among devotees.
The balanced composition of the independent SIT should clear the doubts of the opposition party which had earlier raised doubts over the integrity of the state police team.
A massive controversy broke out last month when Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu publicly alleged that Tirupati laddu was contaminated with animal fat during the previous YSR Congress regime. He ordered a probe by a nine-member SIT. However, it suspended the investigation, pending the Supreme Court’s decision.
Neutral order
Neither the ruling Telugu Desam Party nor the opposition YSR Congress can claim victory following the SC order. The court has refrained from going into the merits of the arguments and counter-arguments from both sides of the political divide. It is clear that the concerns of the devotees alone guided the court’s decision to order an independent investigation.
The bench did not agree for the SC-monitored probe or a judicial inquiry by a sitting or a retired judge, as sought by the petitioners including the YSRCP leader and former chairman of the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) S V Subba Reddy.
On its part, the state government told the apex court that it was ready for any kind of probe, including by the CBI, into the adulteration issue.
The terms of reference of the new SIT and the timeframe for the probe are yet to be announced. However, one thing is clear. The court’s order is expected to bring respite from the ongoing political war of words over the alleged sacrilege at India’s richest temple.
Truth unknowable?
While the intervention by the highest court of the land may have brought the curtains down on the raging political row, one gets a lingering sense that the truth regarding the extent of adulteration may be unknowable.
The main issue here is that the ghee samples—collected on July 6 and July 12—were found to be adulterated in the tests conducted by the National Dairy Development Board’s accredited laboratory in Gujarat. Obviously, the ghee from those four tankers was not used for making Laddu prasadam. Nobody is saying that they were used.
The consignments which reached the hill shrine till July 4 were not tested but the consignments which reached on July 6 and July 12 were tested and found to be tainted. Now, it would be quite logical to say that the earlier consignments from the same supplier could have been contaminated.
This is because the Tamil Nadu-based supplier, AR Dairy Food, chosen by the previous government based on the lowest bid offer following the controversial modification of tender norms, is expected to use the same ingredients and employ the same processes in ghee making.
But if one insists on evidence for adulteration of the earlier stock that was already used, it is impossible to meet that demand. Once an omelette is made, it cannot be unmade (It is a fundamental principle of thermodynamics).
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