Amidst a controversy over serving “chikki” (a sweet made of groundnut and jaggery) instead of the traditional prasad “mohanthal” at the famous Ambaji temple in Gujarat’s Banaskantha district, state Congress president Jagdish Thakor on Sunday alleged that Attempts are being made to tamper with the business to earn money under the banner of the criminal BJP.
Thakor offers “Mohanthal” sweets in a temple here and it is claimed that ‘Mohanthal’ (a sweet made of gram flour, grease and sugar) has been a traditional offering in the Ambaj temple since time immemorial. He said that a state-wide agitation would be launched if Mohanthal was not adopted as Prasad again.
Meanwhile, replacing ‘Mohanthal’ with ‘chikki’, Gujarat minister and government spokesperson Hrishikesh Patel said ‘chikki’ is non-perishable and can be taken online by devotees sitting far away. .
On Friday, the Congress was thrown out of the assembly demanding a discussion on changing the prasad being distributed in the Ambaj temple and protesting in the house.
Speaking to JSC, Thakor alleged, “Mohanthal Prasad has been blessed with traditions and faith for years. It is a part of Ambar temple traditions from the time of ancient kingdoms. But to make money at the cost of tradition, the Bharatiya Janata Party has replaced it with ‘Chikki’.
He said that instead of resolving this issue involving the center of faith of lakhs of devotees, the BJP government is “threatening” that the ‘Mohanthal’ will not be brought back as Prasad.
Talking about the case registered in Gandhinagar on Saturday, Minister Patel had said that chikki being used as prasad in the temple is made from special dry fruits and its quality is taken care of.