Priests of Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) on Monday performed a cleansing ritual following alleged reports of the presence of animal fat, including beef tallows in the famous Tirupati laddu ;off

J Shyamala Rao, executive officer of Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams, which oversees the temple, said the rituals will “ward off the ill effects and restore the sanctity of laddu prasadams (consecrated food) along with the well-being of Srivari devotees.

The ritual began at 6 am and lasted till 10 am. It was aimed at propitiating Lord Venkateswara Swamy from the alleged sacrilegious practices such as mixing animal fats in making Tirupati laddus (consecrated sweet) and others.

A cleansing ritual was performed at the Tirumala temple in response to allegations of desecration and the alleged use of animal fat in the preparation of the sacred Tirupati laddus. Temple officials confirmed that the ritual was carried out to restore the sanctity of the offerings following accusations tied to the previous YSR Congress regime.

The Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams, held a 'shanti homam' at the reverred Sri Venkateswara Swamy Temple to "purify" the shrine amid claims of beef tallow and lard being used to make the laddus offered to the diety and then given as 'prasadam' to the devotees.