DAILY NEWS WRAP | 6 NOVEMBER 2026
On 5 November 2026 the Supreme Court refused a plea to transfer the Tirupati laddu ghee adulteration trial out of Andhra Pradesh, saying no case for transfer was made out.
What the Court decided
On 5 November 2026 a Bench of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi rejected a petition seeking to transfer the trial in the Tirupati laddu ghee adulteration case outside Andhra Pradesh. The case is Machindra Shantaram Lanke v. State of Andhra Pradesh. The Court ordered: ‘No case made out to transfer trial. Dismissed.’
The petitioner is a Maharashtra-based dairy businessman and one of the accused. His senior counsel argued that the atmosphere in the State was politically charged and that statements by State office-holders threatened a fair trial, and asked that the trial be shifted to a neighbouring State. The Bench noted that the probe is with a Central agency, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The Chief Justice told the petitioner that if something happens, he can come back to the Court.
Background of the case
According to reports of the investigations by the CBI and the Enforcement Directorate (ED), the case involves a Rs 250 crore scam in the supply of about 68 lakh kg of fake and synthetic ghee to the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) between 2019 and 2024. These are the allegations under trial. The accused have not been found guilty by any court in the material cited here, and the decision of 5 November 2026 concerns only where the trial will be held.
Why a trial may be shifted
The Supreme Court can transfer a case from one State to another when a fair trial in the original place is in danger. The test is whether the case for transfer is made out on the facts, and here the Bench found that it was not. The right to a fair trial is treated as part of Article 21, the right to life and personal liberty, so a plea of this kind rests on that right.
Constitutional / Legal / Institutional framework
Article 21 says no person shall be deprived of life or personal liberty except according to procedure established by law, and the Supreme Court has read the right to a fair trial into it. A transfer petition asks the Court to protect that right by moving a trial. On 5 November 2026 the Bench held that no case for transfer was made out and kept the trial in Andhra Pradesh.
CLAT angle
- Article 21: right to life and personal liberty; fair trial is part of it.
- A transfer plea must show that a fair trial is not possible in the State concerned.
- Bench: CJI Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi; order: ‘No case made out to transfer trial. Dismissed.’
- Probe by the CBI, a Central agency; ED also investigated.
- The ghee was supplied to the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD).
Key facts
| Fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Date | 5 November 2026 |
| Case | Machindra Shantaram Lanke v. State of Andhra Pradesh |
| Bench | CJI Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi |
| Plea | Transfer of trial to a neighbouring State |
| Result | Dismissed; trial stays in Andhra Pradesh |
| Investigating agencies | CBI and ED |
| Right invoked | Fair trial under Article 21 |
Mnemonic / memory hook
‘Fair trial, Article Twenty-One.’ The plea rested on fair trial; the Court said no case for transfer was made out.
Sources
The Hindu and Bar and Bench, both dated 5 November 2026.
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