Amaravati, Sep 22 (IANS): Former Andhra Pradesh chief minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy has written a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, urging him to severely reprimand Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu for hurting the beliefs of crores of people for political objectives by spreading a lie that "the ghee used for making Tirupati laddu contained animal fat".

Calling Naidu a "pathological and a habitual liar", Jagan Mohan Reddy said he had stopped so low as to seriously hurt the beliefs of crores of people purely for political objectives.

Stating that Naidu was making attempts to irreparably tarnish the sanctity, integrity, and reputation of Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam, he cautioned that these lies could precipitate a widespread agony, having far-reaching consequences on various fronts.

"His actions have indeed lowered not only the statue of a Chief Minister but also that of everyone in public life and also the sanctity of the world-renowned TTD and its practices. Sir, the entire country looks to you at this critical juncture. It is very imperative that Naidu be reprimanded in a severe way for his shameless act of spreading lies and the truth be brought to light," the YSR Congress Party chief wrote in the letter dated September 22.

The former chief minister stated this would help allay the suspicions that Naidu created in the minds of crores of Hindu devotees and restore faith in the sanctity of the TTD.

Jagan alleged that Naidu made the false allegation to divert people’s attention from the failure of his government on all fronts.

Naidu spread blatant lies against the practices of the TTD by alleging that the ghee that was being used in the preparation of the prasadams in the Tirumala temple was adulterated and that the ghee contained animal fats. This is indeed a lie spread with political motives and this false propaganda has the potential to hurt the sentiments of Hindu devotees across the globe, the YSRCP chief said.

Jagan mentioned that the tanker containing the possibly adulterated ghee arrived at Tirupati on July 12, 2024, and the same was rejected and the ghee was not used in the preparation of the prasadams.

"The robust practices in place for decades in TTD could identify the questionable quality and therefore the ghee was not used. Despite this comforting scenario, Naidu chose to callously make a remark that Tirumala Laddus were made with animal fats and not with ghee.”

The YSRCP leader explained in detail the robustness of the policies and procedures that the TTD has been following in its procurement for the past several decades. He claimed that the question of sub-standard material being used in the preparation of prasadam does not arise.

He also wrote that there were several instances in the past when ghee tankers were rejected.

He pointed out that the Board of Trustees is vested with the power to oversee the administration of the TTD and the state government has little role in the management of the affairs of the Tirumala Venkateswara temple.