Varanasi temple bans cake offerings after influencer's birthday celebration stirs row

A video of the incident shows the influencer, Mamta Rai, entering the temple and performing rituals before cutting the. She was also seen offering cake to idol.

An influencer with over 10 lakh followers on Instagram sparked controversy by cutting her birthday cake inside the Kaal Bhairav Temple in Uttar Pradesh's Varanasi, resulting in authorities putting a ban on cake offerings inside the religious site.

Temple's chief priest said the authorities were unaware that Mamta Rai had such a large following on social media.(X/@MrSinha_)

A video of the incident shows the influencer, Mamta Rai, entering the temple and performing rituals before cutting the cake in the sanctum sanctorum. She was also seen offering the first piece of cake to the idol.

The reel drew criticism from a section of social media users, devotees and religious leaders. However, the temple's chief priest Naveen Giri said that there was nothing new in it.

“She told us that she wanted to offer cake to the deity. It was nothing new, people do offer cake here at the temple. Like everyone, she also cut her cake here and offered it,” an NDTV report quoted Giri as saying.

Temple bans cake offerings

Naveen Giri said the temple authorities were unaware that Mamta Rai had such a large following on social media.

“In the video, she presented it like she celebrated her birthday inside the temple. The temple management wasn't aware of it. This single incident was then blown out of proportion,” Giri added.

The temple management has reportedly decided to ban cutting and offering cakes inside the temple.

A religious body in Varanasi - ‘Kashi Vidwat Parishad’ - called the incident a violation of the temple's sanctity and was reportedly planning to send a legal notice to the Mamta Rai.

"One should seek blessings from the almighty on their birthday. Blowing candles and cutting cake inside temples like in the video is not okay. We will approach the Chief Minister to make sure such practices stop," the report quoted General Secretary of Kashi Vidwat Parishad Ram Narayan Dwivedi.