ED Opens Money Laundering Angle in Tirupati Laddu

Hyderabad, Feb 10: The Directorate of Enforcement has stepped into the controversial Tirupati laddu adulteration case, registering an ECIR under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act to probe alleged hawala-linked bribe transactions. The ED action follows charge sheets filed by the CBI-led SIT, which point to a deep money trail involving private dairy firms, middlemen and officials of the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam.

According to investigators, bribes were allegedly routed through hawala channels to influence ghee tenders and quality clearances. The SIT charge sheet, filed in a Nellore court on January 23, reportedly names 36 accused, including dairy company directors, and alleges the use of shell companies to move around ₹250 crore. Officials were allegedly paid to clear mixtures of vegetable oils and chemicals as “pure ghee” used for laddus — a charge that has shocked devotees across the country.

The probe has gained political heat after Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu announced a one-man committee to fix responsibility based on the SIT report. While the YSR Congress Party claims the SIT gave a clean chit by ruling out animal fat adulteration, Naidu has strongly denied this, calling the episode a serious betrayal of devotees’ faith. The alleged irregularities are said to have occurred between 2019 and 2024, during the previous YSRCP government, keeping the issue firmly in the political and public spotlight.