Tirupati Prasad row: What do Mumbaikars think?

The Tirupati Balaji Temple in Andhra Pradesh, one of the most revered pilgrimage sites in India, sees devotees from across the world. Its famous prasad, the Tirupati laddu, is distributed not only to the devotees who visit the temple but also to those who cannot make it to the religious structure, via online services. The recent reports of adulteration and discovery of beef talon, fish oil and lard have upset members of the Hindu community, particularly those from Andhra Pradesh and Telangana who have been devotees of Lord Venkateshwara since childhood.

Tirupati Prasad row: Community speak

Veena Naidu, 51, is a devotee from Chembur. She says, "This is an issue of our faith. Temples are a place of sanctity for us. We expect strict adherence to religious rules at places of worship. When rules are followed at other religious structures, why should they not be followed here? Those who are behind the adulteration must be brought to justice as this is a mockery of our faith."

Seventy-two-year-old YK Reddy, a Navi Mumbai resident, believes that temples should not be run by those who have no idea about religious practices and must be free from government control. "For most trustees, the management of temples is a plain business. They know Tirupati sees a large footfall of crowd. For them, it is an opportunity to sell their products and they do not understand that for a devotee the prasad or any item received from the temple is a matter of faith. I have also heard that people who do not practice Hinduism are on the temple board. They will not understand the rituals or sentiments or religious significance of any practice followed at the temple. So for instance if they get the beef talon at a cheaper rate than ghee, they will buy it because they do not understand the importance of adhering to vegetarianism or abstinence from beef products. This is exactly why temples should not come under the government and must be run by those who follow strict adherence to the faith."

Lakshmi, a local from Tirupati, who stays in Pune now, says, "For years, we have believed in the purity of the prasad. To hear that it might be adulterated feels like a personal attack on our faith."

Tirupati Prasad row: Some UP temples only accept fruits, coconuts

Amid the controversy, some temples in Prayagraj district of Uttar Pradesh stated that they would be accepting only coconuts, dry fruits and fruits from devotees to avoid any kind of adulterated prasad being offered to the deity.

"We understand the concerns but if such a rule is implemented then it will severely impact our business. I hope the rule is not implemented across Uttar Pradesh," says a worried Shyam Sundar Sharma, who runs a prasad stall in Varanasi.

"The authorities can conduct testing of the sweet shops near temples and allow devotees to only buy from there. What is the point in impacting hundreds of shopkeepers just because of one incident?" says VK Singh, another resident of Varanasi.

Tirupati Prasad row: What does Mumbai think

The Tirupati prasad not meeting the purity standards has triggered strong sentiments from Mumbaikars also.

"How can they order laddus that have been made in beef talon knowing very well that consumption of beef is considered to be a sin. Isn't this a deliberate and malicious attempt to hurt sentiments?" questions Vinay Patil, a Navi Mumbai resident. He adds, "How can we be assured that other temples are free of adulterated or do not have non-vegetarian contents? The incident came to light only because the government changed. Otherwise, the practice would have continued. The management uses substandard products for devotees while they get richer on the money offered in the same temples."

Virar resident Nutan Deshpande says the rule by Prayagraj temples is a welcome move. "Offering coconuts instead of prasad feels like a better option. At least I know exactly what I'm offering, and there's no risk of adulteration. Fruits, too, are considered to be fresh."

College student Ravisha Pathak says that the issue should not be politicised or be used to flare up communal sentiments. "Such issues, especially with the use of social media, can flare up communal sentiments in an already charged and polarised environment. It is important to keep our tempers cool and be careful about making any kind of sensitive statements. Surely sentiments have been hurt but I think it's time to move on as there are other important issues in the country and mainly because the temple has gone for course correction."

A management member of a famous temple in suburban Mumbai says that all the temples will now come under scanner.

"We also make various kinds of prasad and offer it to the deities and then to the devotees. While we ensure that all the products are purchased in consultation with the temple priests, the fact is now devotees will begin having doubts about all temples owing to this incident. The Deputy Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh has undertaken penance and God is kind enough to forgive the devotees. And I don't think this will have an impact on the number of devotees visiting the temple because faith is above everything else. At the same time, it is also important that temple boards across the country behave with responsibility and do not play with the sentiments of the devotees," he said.