Mathura, Nov 4 (IANS): A peculiar scene unfolded at Mathura's Banke Bihari temple on Monday morning, as devotees queued up to collect water dripping from an elephant sculpture and consuming it, believing it to be 'Charan Amrit'—the sacred water blessed by the deities.

A video of the incident also saw frantic circulation on social media this morning, showing the fervent devotion of the attendees as they sip the water, unaware of its origins. The spectacle ignited a wave of reactions, with some praising the faith of the devotees, while others expressing alarm at the health implications of consuming what they think is holy water.

IANS spoke to the temple 'Sevaks' to find out the truth and the revelations were shocking. We found that the water emanating from the duct was actually 'condensation liquid' from the Air Conditioning unit and not 'Charan Amrit', as assumed by devotees.

Dinesh Goswami, one of the temple's sevaks told IANS, "We respect the faith people have in God but it's essential to inform them. The water they believe to be 'Charan Amrit' is actually just water from the AC. The real 'Charan Amrit' would contain ingredients like Tulsi and rose petals."

Mohan Goswami, a fellow sevak, echoed similar sentiments and emphasised the need to raise awareness among the devotees.

The revelations sparked major controversy and also resulted in a wave of anger and outrage among the worshippers.

A devotee named Keshav Dev said, "We come here with deep faith, and now this news breaks our hearts. The temple must prevent people from consuming this water, believing it to be divine."

Another devotee, Kanha stated, "We consider 'Jal' sacred. If it's just AC water, it's unsafe."

Initially, the development left the devotees pleasantly surprised and curious but when they got to know the ‘reality’, this put them off. Many have called for action against the temple authorities as they didn’t inform the worshippers.