"Betrayal to faith of crores of Hindus": Acharya Pramod Krishnam on Tirupati Prasadam row

Indore (Madhya Pradesh) [India], September 22 (ANI): Former Congress leader Acharya Pramod Krishnam on Sunday termed the reports of Tirupati Prasadam adulteration as a betrayal to the faith of crores of Hindus and called for a high-level committee to investigate the matter.
Speaking to ANI, Acharya Pramod Krishnam said, "This is a betrayal of the faith of crores of Hindus. This is a conspiracy to end and corrupt Sanatana Dharma. This has been happening for centuries but this is an international conspiracy and some Indian political parties are also involved in this."
The Acharya also linked the issue with the previous controversial remarks by Priyanka Kharge on 'Sanatana Dharma' and said, "The son of Congress National President Mallikarjun Kharge, Priyanka Kharge, says Sanatana is a dirty word. DMK leaders are saying that Sanatan should be abolished. This conspiracy should be unearthed. Foreign powers want to weaken India and they cannot do that if Sanatana is strong. So they are attacking the Sanatana first. What the Mughals did centuries ago is being done again."
"It is time that the administration of temples and trusts be handed over to Sanatana... I demand to PM Modi that a high-level committee be constituted and the truth should come out," said the Acharya.
Earlier in the day, Mahamandaleshwar 1008 Mahant Amar Das Ji Maharaj of Ram Mandir, Dausa, Rajasthan, on Sunday demanded a CBI inquiry into the alleged use of 'animal fat' in the Tirupati Laddu Prasadam, distributed at the Tirumala Temple in Tirupati.
Amar Das Ji Maharaj expressed that the Tirupati Balaji temple incident deeply "hurts" the faith of Hindus.
"The leaders who betray God--how will they spare the people of our country? This is a major betrayal of Hindus, and it affects all our Hindu brothers across the world. Their souls have been wounded, torn to pieces by such leaders who claim to believe in our Tirupati Balaji," he said.
"Tirupati Balaji resides in the hearts of every Sanatani across the world. The presence of fat or fish oil in such a sacred temple is extremely unfortunate. It is an insult to Hindus, and yet many of our Hindu brothers remain asleep. We urge Hindus to wake up and raise their voices against such unrighteous individuals. We also request the government to initiate a CBI inquiry into all members of the committee involved and the government in power at the time," he added.
Amar Das Ji Maharaj further called for strict action against those responsible."The harshest and most severe punishment should be given to these people, and such leaders should never be forgiven. This is not just a betrayal of us, or our future, but of Sanatan Dharma itself," he said.
Earlier, spiritual leader and founder of the Art of Living, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, called for the formation of a committee of spiritual leaders to oversee temple matters.
In a video message, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar urged for action against those involved in food adulteration."We have read in history books how the sepoy mutiny of 1857 occurred. Now, we see how deeply Hindus are hurt by this laddoo incident. This cannot be pardoned or forgiven. It is malicious and driven by the greed of those involved. They must be severely punished. All their assets should be seized, and they should be jailed, whoever is remotely involved in this process."
"We must check not just the laddoo, but every food product. What about the ghee sold in the market? Is anyone checking what's being put in it? All those who adulterate food and falsely label it as vegetarian, while adding any non-vegetarian substance, should be very strictly punished," Sri Sri Ravi Shankar said.
On September 19, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu sparked a political controversy by alleging that the ghee used in the preparation of Tirupati Laddu Prasadam during the previous YSRCP government contained animal fat. (ANI)