NEW DELHI: Supreme Court docket on Friday changed the Andhra Pradesh govt-appointed particular investigation staff with a brand new SIT comprising officers from CBI, Andhra Pradesh Police and Meals Security & Requirements Authority of India (FSSAI) to probe alleged adulteration of the well-known laddu prasadam of Tirupati.
“If there may be substance within the allegations, it’s a very severe matter however we won’t enable the courtroom to be made a political battleground,” a bench of Justices B R Gavai and Okay V Viswanathan mentioned.It changed the TDP govt-appointed SIT with one that can comprise two officers every from CBI and the state police and an FSSAI officer. The probe shall be monitored by the CBI director, the bench ordered.
5 PILs had been filed in SC shortly after AP chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Sept 18 alleged, primarily based on a laboratory report, that ghee used within the preparation of laddu prasadam contained animal fats. Disposal of petitions by SC means the SIT needn’t submit its report back to the courtroom and it should be acted upon by the state govt.
SC: Want impartial probe to assuage emotions of crores
The SC bench mentioned although there was no doubting the flexibility of the state-appointed SIT, an impartial one was required because the allegations within the FIR had “the potential of wounding sentiments of crores of devotees of Lord Venkateswara residing worldwide”.
The proceedings noticed sharp exchanges between senior advocates Mukul Rohatgi, showing for AP govt, and Sidharth Luthra, for Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam Board, on one facet and senior advocate Kapil Sibal and Subramanian Swamy on the opposite facet demanding an impartial probe.
Responding to the courtroom’s question relating to the Centre’s stand on the controversy, solicitor basic Tushar Mehta mentioned, “If there may be any aspect of reality within the allegations, it’s unacceptable.” He mentioned the Centre didn’t have something towards the state-appointed SIT, whose officers had been competent and succesful to probe the controversy. He urged that if the courtroom wished, the Centre would depute a senior officer to oversee the probe.
The bench requested Rohatgi whether or not there was conclusive proof with the chief minister to make that assertion on adulteration of prasadam. Rohatgi mentioned in accordance with the government, there was conclusive proof and the SIT needs to be allowed to unearth the reality. “In query is the standard of ghee equipped by a contractor on two days — July 6 and 12 — and whether or not these contained animal fats,” he mentioned. Sibal claimed that the ghee had vegetable fats, not animal fats.
Justice Viswanathan mentioned the TTD Board chairman was on report that these two consignments weren’t used within the preparation of prasadam. Luthra mentioned, “The shrine on the hill is sacrosanct. Nothing tainted can come there. The tankers on these two days had been examined on the hill and located to be contaminated.” Sibal requested, “If the hill is sacrosanct, why had been the tankers allowed to go to the hill?”
The bench mentioned, “Fortuitously or sadly, each side are warring teams. We don’t want any political drama within the courtroom.”
In its order, the SC mentioned, “We make clear that now we have not gone into the allegations and counter-allegations of the petitioners or the state govt. We make clear that we’ll not allow the courtroom for use as a political battleground. Nonetheless, to assuage the emotions of crores of individuals, we discover that investigation needs to be performed by an impartial SIT consisting of representatives of state police, CBI and a consultant of FSSAI. It would even be acceptable that the investigation is carried underneath the supervision of the CBI director.”
“We make clear that our order shouldn’t be construed as any reflection on the independence and equity of officers of the (state-appointed) SIT. We’re constituting an impartial SIT solely to assuage the emotions of crores of individuals having religion within the deity. We get rid of the petitions.”
