Tirupati Laddu Tangle Reeks of Petty Politics and Rattles Naidu's Image

There was no case to jump the gun, but Naidu appeared to be in a hurry to paint his rival Jagan in dark colours.

Is Naidu staking a long-held reputation as a balanced leader who is ideologically flexible but strong on credibility by Indian standards in a mood of vendetta?

(Photo: The News Minute)

As a long-term connoisseur of Tirupati's delicious laddus, I find it shocking when I hear that the sweets representing the holy prasadam of the hill temple to Lord Venkateswara (or the Hindu deity Vishnu), may have been contaminated with animal fat or fish oil. But, on patient examination and afterthought, what I smell is not its characteristic cardamom or clove flavours but the stink of petty politics.

At the centre of the controversy stands Telugu Desam Party (TDP) supremo and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Nara Chandrababu Naidu, who seems to be taking an unseemly political bet in the backdrop of his association with Prime Minister Modi and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). This is a bet that could go wrong, as the timing, manner, and proportionality of the accusations, implicitly targeting Naidu's predecessor and bete-noire YS Jagan Reddy, does not sufficiently withstand scrutiny, unless there is some detail in the woodwork that may change equations.

On the face of it, Naidu seeking a detailed report on the alleged use of impure substances in the ghee used to make the sweet is all right. Still, the way he announced the whole thing at a public meeting in Prakasam district, with a clear reference to religious sentiments, it would be naive to see it as only an administrative action.

The correct thing to do is the await further details. This is a whodunit that has several layers of official and autonomous decisions besides checks on processes, quality tests, and safety practices that would challenge administrators, investigators, and scientists alike. There was no case to jump the gun, but Naidu appeared to be in a hurry to paint his rival in dark colours. 

There is now an increasingly common pattern in India's race-to-the-bottom politics: A vague sort of news item appears to trigger a controversy, political spokespersons amplify it with the proverbial masala and ideological colour, much of mainstream news media suspends a journalist's desired sense of disbelief to sustain a shrill debate and social media wars break out – with none the wiser on hard facts. By the time the judiciary or independent bodies get to air their considered conclusions, much mud has been slung in filmy garishness.

Hindutva Colour Given to the Issue is Unmistakable

Let's consider the sequence of events of what might come to be called the Tirupati Laddu Scam.

Naidu became CM in a political bounce-back on 12 June. Weeks later, on 23 July, the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) released a report that sent alarm bells ringing about the ghee quality based on a sample sent by the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) on 12 July.

It is pertinent to note that the NDDB itself noted that feeding cows with fodder containing high amounts of vegetable oil or using some extraction methods could lead to 'false positives' i.e. a false alarm.

About 20,000 kg of ghee may have been of substandard quality, but that does not necessarily imply a large-scale, wilful use of animal fat and a consequential blow to religious sentiments. The supplier in question was supposed to supply 850,000 kg of ghee of which 68,000 kg had been delivered.

In such a context, what we see in Naidu's speech and manner is the trigger for a crescendo of innuendoes. Since the BJP and its affiliates and hordes of its loud supporters often point to Jagan Reddy's birth in a Christian family, the Hindutva colour given to the issue is unmistakable. But we do need to ask questions that are relevant in linking Reddy to the misdeeds, if any.

The TTD is an autonomous body that controls one of the world's richest temples and runs charitable trusts. With a net worth estimated at Rs 3,00,000 crore like a Nifty-listed company, the TTD has layers of trustees, officials, and processes that run the laddu phenomenon, including online purchases.

How can one possibly interfere in this process from a political point of view without a chain of command or audit trail? That is the question investigators need to ask if the political aspect of the award of ghee contracts or its monitoring is to be examined.

While we await the details that answer the question about who should be held accountable, it makes more sense to look at it politically.

Is Naidu Lowering His Standards of Politics?

The TDP's rivals from Jagan's YSR Congress allege Naidu is using the Tirupati issue to divert attention from demanding administrative matters. Naidu badly needs the Modi government's support for his ambitions and promises linked to developmental issues and the revival of the stalled Andhra capital at Amaravati, his dream project. 

However, there are deeper questions we need to ask: Is Naidu staking a long-held reputation as a balanced leader who is ideologically flexible but strong on credibility by Indian standards in a mood of vendetta? There is little doubt that Jagan's style was abrasive and aggressive, and his jailing of Naidu reeked of political animosity. Is Naidu lowering his standards to match his rival?

Under Jagan's YSR Congress rule, the state CID alleged that Naidu played a key role in siphoning of about Rs 371 crore in a skill development scam using fictitious companies. If the Tirupati Laddu episode is a case of revenge, Naidu may have to think of its wide-ranging ramifications.

First up, his carefully nurtured image as an ideologically pragmatic but politically secular leader who can smoothly move between federalist principles and regional aspirations will be called to question. It may lead to the TDP's fallout with the minority Muslims, who make up nearly 10 percent of Andhra's population. Naidu may also be burning bridges with secular parties who may become wary of him in coalition dynamics.

Naidu also has to worry about the more-Hindu-than-thou Pawan Kalyan, his deputy chief minister from the Jana Sena Party. The movie star-turned-politician has said he will seek atonement for the animal-fat row through an 11-day purification penance in what is apparently a political gimmick that follows up his demand for a "Sanatana Dharma Raskhana Board" (a security board for the defence of the Hindu religious order) soon after the animal fat report broke out.

At 43, Kalyan is emerging as a potential long-term rival to Naidu's 41-year-old son Nara Lokesh, who is widely seen as an heir apparent in the TDP.

Any which way, it seems Naidu is sandwiched between the pressures of being a BJP ally and an uneasy coalition partner whose style, speech, and track record provide a challenge that reminds one of the fallouts between Lalu Prasad Yadav and Nitish Kumar in Bihar (after a cozy spell of collaboration).

Given the increasing fluidity of politics in the southern states, Naidu may be burning long-term boats in the pursuit of short-term acts that smell of religion-laced politics. Is he doing this to pre-empt a Hindu tag from Pawan Kalyan? Or is Kalyan using Naidu's statement to ride piggyback as a long-term ally of the BJP? Only time will tell.

(The writer is a senior journalist and commentator who has worked for Reuters, Economic Times, Business Standard, and Hindustan Times. He can be reached on Twitter @madversity. This is an opinion article, and the views expressed are the author’s own. The Quint neither endorses nor is responsible for them.)