New board of directors of Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams holds its first meeting in the middle of Laddoo Row

Tirumala (Andhra Pradesh):

The new board of trustees of the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) Trust held its first meeting on Monday at Annamaiah Bhavan in Tirumala.

According to sources, the meeting is expected to cover 80 items on the agenda, with TTD chairman BR Naidu expected to announce the decisions taken later in the afternoon. Some members attended the meeting virtually.

Earlier this month, BR Naidu was sworn in as the 54th Chairman of the Board of Directors of TTD. The ceremony took place at Tirumala Sri Venkateswara Temple, where TTD Managing Director Shyamala Rao took oath. After the ceremony, Mr. Naidu had darshan of Varaha Swamy and then visited the temple from Vaikuntham Queue complex. After his visit to Lord Venkateswara, the priests offered blessings with Vedic chants at the Ranganayakula Mandapam.

Mr. Naidu expressed his intention to serve the temple with dedication and selflessness. His appointment follows the controversy surrounding Tirupati Prasadam last month. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu has accused the previous YSRCP government of using substandard ingredients, including animal fat, in the preparation of Tirupati laddus.

To address these allegations, the Supreme Court intervened on October 4, setting up an independent Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the use of animal fat in laddus. The court pointed out that “the sentiments of millions of devotees across the world are involved in Tirumala prasadam”, and added: “We do not want this to turn into a political drama.” The SIT will comprise two officers from the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), two from the Andhra Pradesh Police and a senior official from the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI).

The court had then said that the new SIT would be supervised by the CBI director and would replace the old team appointed by the state government.