The boon of death
Temples, places of worship and the beliefs around it are created by man for the sanctity of his life. Many believers live on the faith that a God that protects then exists somewhere in some form. Faith in God helps millions of people get through their lives. But when this trust turns into a business, an enterprise of competition do we understand what a threat it can be for people. Owing to faith, the world is suffering on one hand and, is falling prey to superstitions on another. Though we have churches, temples and masjids dotting every area, people are growing highly intolerant of each other. Devotion is not euphoria. When it becomes something like a drug, a man's downfall begins from right there.
Sometimes, the very faith that guards him turns into a death trap. Indian politics stands in such euphoric religious beliefs. They have led us to Gujarat and Sikh massacres. Tragedies that have occurred on religious occasions aren't any different from these ones either. The incident of crackers having claimed lives of many people in Kerala is still fresh in people's minds. Just a few months ago, people who were watching Ramleela event on railway tracks met a tragic end with a train running over them. Our acceptance of stampedes at village events and fairs are considered nearly normal. Karnataka is now witnessing one man made tragedy that could have been totally avoided.
The number of deaths that are occurring owing to consumption of poison mixed prasada in Sulvadi Maramma temple of Hanur in Chamarajanagar taluk are increasing by the day. Religious institutions organise events not only in the basis of belief, but as a business proposition as well. They add a lot of money to the treasury of the temple under the pretext of such events. This being the case, should any mishaps or tragedies occur in the course of events, the organisers or temple authorities would be held responsible for everything.
It is the responsibility of the organisers to ensure all precautionary measures are in place to avoid any untoward incidents when lakhs of people are assembling for an auspicious event. The mindset that we only need the money donated by devotees but their safety isn't our responsibility is what leads to tragic events like these. Organisers have special responsibility to ensure the Prasada offered at religious events are prepared with great care, hygiene and responsibility, bearing in mind the massive number of devotees who'd be consuming it as part of the ceremony.
But the number of people who are falling ill after consuming the Prasada is increasing these days. With the size of the religious ceremonies getting bigger, the quantity of Prasada prepared at the site is also getting larger. At times like this, the aspect of hygiene takes a backseat. But in case of Chamarajanagar, the issue is albeit different. The tragedy is not owing to lack of hygiene, but because someone has mixed deadly poison into the Prasada that left people dead. A person who can mix poison into Prasada can never be a believer. He or she must surely be a criminal at heart and spirit. Many innocents fell dead over his design.
Hence the incident has to be probed in all aspects to catch the culprits without delay. There were all chances of avoiding the untoward incidents. It was the responsibility of organisers to test the Prasada before it was distributed or served to the people. If this was offered to some animals or birds, so many deaths could have been easily avoided. Or, the cook should have tasted the food before it was served. And they should have waited for an hour or later before it was taken to the devotees for consumption. That could have avoided a few deaths. The police cannot absolve the responsibility of organisers in this in any manner. At the same time, there could be a big conspiracy behind poison being mixed into the Prasada. Those who were waiting to get some plum posts or some position within the temple committee or a fight between two groups wanting to cater for the event could also be behind this mishap.
Hence this incident has to be probed from different angles. At the same time, there are instances where students fall ill after consuming mid day meals that also need to be probed for clarity. Many categories of people are not too happy with the mid day meals being served to poor students and the fact that students of all castes sit together to eat. So chances of that food being adulterated cannot be ruled out. Government needs to exercise extreme care with mid day meals being prepared and served. The area has to be monitored while being oraored and distributed. When we have minds that can add poison to Prasada, a mid day meal being contaminated can never be too far.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
'Go back to your own country': Indian-origin taxi driver attacked in Dublin
London, Aug 5 (PTI): An Indian-origin taxi driver based in Ireland for over 23 years has become the latest to be targeted in an unprovoked attack in the capital Dublin, with local police (Gardai) launching an investigation into the violent assault.
Lakhvir Singh, in his 40s, told local media that he picked up two young men in their 20s on Friday night and dropped them at Poppintree, in the Ballymun suburb of Dublin.
Upon arriving at the destination, the men are said to have opened the vehicle door and struck him twice on the head with a bottle. As the suspects fled, they reportedly shouted: "Go back to your own country".
"In 10 years I've never seen anything like this happen," Singh told ‘Dublin Live’.
"I'm really scared now and I'm off the road at the moment. It will be very hard to go back. My children are really scared," he said.
A Dublin police spokesperson said Singh was taken to the city's Beaumont Hospital with injuries determined as not life-threatening.
"Gardaí are investigating an assault reported to have occurred in Poppintree, Ballymun, Dublin 11 at approximately 11:45 pm on Friday, 1st August 2025. A man, aged in his 40s, was brought to Beaumont Hospital for treatment of non-life-threatening injury. Investigations are ongoing," the spokesperson said.
The incident followed an Indian Embassy advisory, also issued on Friday, expressing safety concerns following recent attacks in and around the capital Dublin and urging Indian citizens to take safety precautions.
"There has been an increase in the instances of physical attacks reported against Indian citizens in Ireland recently,” states the advisory.
“The embassy is in touch with the authorities concerned in Ireland in this regard. At the same time, all Indian citizens in Ireland are advised to take reasonable precautions for their personal security and avoid deserted areas, especially at odd hours," the statement reads, adding emergency embassy contact details as 0899423734 and cons.dublin@mea.gov.in.
It came in the wake of a brutal attack on a 40-year-old Indian man at Parkhill Road in the Tallaght suburb of Dublin on July 19, described as “mindless, racist violence” by locals.
The Gardai had opened an investigation into the case and Indian Ambassador to Ireland Akhilesh Mishra was among those who took to social media to express shock over the attack.
“Regarding the recent incident of physical attack on an Indian national that happened in Tallaght, Dublin, the embassy is in touch with the victim and his family. All the requisite assistance is being offered. The embassy is also in touch with the relevant Irish authorities in this regard,” the embassy said in a social media post days after the incident.
A Stand Against Racism protest was also held by the local community in condemnation of what was described as a "vicious racist attack" and to express solidarity with migrants.
Last week, Dr Santosh Yadav took to LinkedIn to post details of a “brutal, unprovoked racist attack”.
The entrepreneur and AI expert stressed that it was not an isolated incident and called for “concrete measures” from the governments of Ireland and India to ensure Indians feel safe to walk the streets of Dublin.
His post revealed that a group of six teenagers attacked him from behind as he walked to his apartment in Dublin.
“This is not an isolated incident. Racist attacks on Indian men and other minorities are surging across Dublin — on buses, in housing estates, and on public streets. Yet, the government is silent. There is no action being taken against these perpetrators. They run free and are emboldened to attack again,” reads Yadav's post.
Fine Gael party Councillor for Tallaght South, Baby Pereppadan, was among those who expressed concern following last month’s attack.
“People need to understand that many Indian people moving to Ireland are here on work permits, to study and work in the healthcare sector or in IT and so on, providing critical skills,” he said.
Another violent anti-Indian attack in Ireland
— Journalist V (@OnTheNewsBeat) August 5, 2025
Taxi driver Lakhvir Singh was attacked with glass bottles while doing his job pic.twitter.com/mtkwhLWISx
