Pawan Kalyan to begin 11-day penance today amid Tirupati laddoo controversy

Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan announced he will undertake an 11-day penance to atone for alleged adulteration in Tirupati laddoos with animal fats.

In Short

• Pawan Kalyan expressed deep anguish over the incident
• Sought divine blessings for ritualistic purification
• Massive political row over use of 'animal fats' in Tirupati temple laddoos

Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan on Sunday will undertake an 11-day penance to seek the blessings of Lord Venkateswara following allegations of adulteration of Tirupati laddoos with 'animal fats'.

The actor-politician said he will begin penance at the Sri Dasavatara Venkateswara Swamy temple in Namburu in Guntur district.

In a post on X, Kalyan expressed his deep anguish over the incident, stating, "After undertaking the 11-day penance, I will visit Tirumala Sri Venkateswara Swamy."

He appealed to the deity for strength to carry out a ritualistic purification to atone for the alleged sins committed during the tenure of the previous YSRCP government.

Kalyan said he was heartbroken when he learnt that animal remains had allegedly been found in the laddoo prasadam.

"The moment I came to know that the laddoo prasadam contained animal remains, my mind was broken. As I am fighting for the welfare of the people, it hurts me that this issue did not come to my attention in the beginning. Everyone who believes in Sanatana Dharma should atone for this grave injustice done to Balaji, the god of Kali Yuga. As part of that, I decided to do a penance initiatio," the actor-turned politician said.

Furthermore, the Janasena founder wondered how Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) employees and board members could be oblivious to these alleged irregularities. TTD is the official custodian of Sri Venkateswara temple in Tirupati.

"My pain is that even the board members and employees who are a part of the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam system are not able to find out these mistakes, even if they find out, they don't talk about it. It seems that they were afraid of the demonic rulers of that time," Kalyan said.

Recently, during an NDA legislative party meeting, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu alleged that the previous YSRCP government had used substandard ingredients and animal fats in the preparation of the famed Tirupati laddoos. These laddoos are renowned for their distinctive taste and are offered as prasadam at the temple. Naidu's claims triggered widespread public outrage across the country.