Amaravati: Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister K Pawan Kalyan, during his speech on the adulteration of Tirupati Laddu in the Assembly on Tuesday, February 24, 2026, said that Hindus needed to learn from Muslims about how to respect their gods.
“Where the problem is arising that they have divided Hindus into castes, and criticising each other’s gods has become normal. What happened to Lord Venkateshwara today? Imagine if it had happened to Christians, Muslims, Jesus, Prophet Muhammad or Allah? Would the reaction from their followers be this way? It would have shaken the country and discussed around the world,” he observed.
“Some of the members (YSRCP) who had come holding the portraits of Hindu gods wouldn’t have done so if it had happened to some other religion. They wouldn’t even talk about the issue because it would affect their vote bank. But in case of Hindu gods, they don’t care because they know that people are divided on the lines of caste, and that if they lose the support of Venkateshwara’s followers, they would still have the devotees of Shiva, Goddess Durga or some other god to woo,” he said.
Remembering his childhood days when he would go to a dargah to pray, Pawan Kalyan said that the very culture of India has, since ancient times, been to respect Muslims and Christians, and that is why the country was still the way it is.
Wondering why the YSR Congress Party members were still in a denial about the issue of adulteration of the ghee used in Tirupati laddus served to devotees from 2020 to 2023 at Tirupati, he said that the Special Investigation Team’s (SIT) report, the Central Bureau of Investigation’s (CBI) report, and other authentic reports had clearly stated that the ghee was made of chemical extracts, animal fat and palm oil.
“Those who perpetrated this crime should be punished. If not, there is the danger of this becoming a tradition in the future,” he cautioned.
He quoted a poem from Amuktamalyada written by Sri Krishnadevaraya, the Emperor of the Vijayanagara, “Entrust the God’s service not to those who collect and siphon his offerings to fill the King’s treasury when there is a loss to the kingdom, but to a person who is alone. Even if such a person consumes the offerings meant for God, he will be destroyed. But if that money is deposited in the treasury, the entire kingdom will be destroyed.”
“In the previous government, this is what happened. If anyone steals the god’s money, their generations will be destroyed. One needs to be very careful. One needs to put that money to humanitarian use. At least now they should stop denying that adulteration has happened, and they need to stop going to courts in Delhi. It will only add to your sins,” Pawan Kalyan cautioned the YSRCP.
