A devotee from Khammam district, Donthu Padmavati, has alleged that she found tobacco wrapped in paper inside a laddu given as prasadam at the Sri Venkateswara Temple in Tirupati. This claim follows closely on the heels of allegations that animal fat was discovered in the ghee used to prepare the laddus, igniting a political controversy in Andhra Pradesh.

Padmavati, who visited the temple on September 19, was shocked to find the tobacco while preparing to distribute the prasadam to her family and neighbors. "It's heartbreaking to find contamination in something so sacred," she said.

This revelation has alarmed many devotees, further casting doubt on the quality control at Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD), the trust managing the temple. The controversy has deepened after Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu claimed that substandard ingredients, including animal fat, had been used in the laddus during the tenure of the previous government led by Jagan Mohan Reddy.

Naidu referenced a lab report from Gujarat, alleging that beef tallow, lard, and fish oil were found in the ghee. Former Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy dismissed the allegations as baseless and accused Naidu of politicizing religion.