Tirupati laddoo row: Rahul Gandhi terms reports of defilement ‘disturbing’, calls for protecting sanctity of religious spaces

"This issue will hurt every devotee and needs to be thoroughly looked into," Rahul said in a post on X.

"Lord Balaji is a revered deity for millions of devotees in India and across the world," Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said. (PTI Photo)

Amidst the raging controversy over allegations of adulteration in the laddoos served as ‘prasadam’ at Tirupati temple in Andhra Pradesh, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi Friday said the reports of “defilement” of prasad were “disturbing”, and stressed the issue needs to be thoroughly looked into.

“Lord Balaji is a revered deity for millions of devotees in India and across the world,” Rahul said in a post on social media platform X. “This issue will hurt every devotee and needs to be thoroughly looked into,” he added.

The Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha also said the authorities across India should protect the sanctity of our religious spaces.

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Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu had on Thursday alleged that animal fat — with ‘beef tallow’, ‘lard’, and ‘fish oil’ — was used as an ingredient in the laddoos at the Tirupati temple instead of ghee during the tenure of the previous Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy government.

Naidu’s claim has triggered a massive political row, with the YSRCP accusing the CM of indulging in “heinous allegations” for political gains and the TDP circulating a lab report to back its claim.

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