Navratri celebrations disrupted; animal bone thrown into prasad at Durga Puja pandal in Azamgarh, Uttar Pradesh
Azamgarh, Uttar Pradesh, India 
24 October, 2026
Case Summary
At a Durga Puja pandal in the Purab Pokhara area of Atraulia town, Azamgarh, Uttar Pradesh, an unidentified man threw a piece of animal bone into the prasad. This desecrated the sacred offering and triggered outrage among Hindu devotees. The incident took place on Sunday night, 25 October 2026, at around 10.30–11 pm, while a three-day Durga Puja fair was underway in Atraulia. Following the incident, devotees and members of the local puja committees gathered at the pandal and protested. As news spread, a crowd assembled at the spot, creating tension in the area. A video relating to the incident also circulated on social media, showing a piece of bone lying near the prasad. The Atraulia Police arrived at the spot, brought the situation under control and began investigating the incident. The police questioned people in the surrounding area and arrested a young man and took him into custody in connection with the incident. They assured the agitated crowd that appropriate action would be taken, following which those gathered at the spot calmed down. However, Circle Officer of Budhanpur, Vijay Kumar Singh Gaur, claimed that the bone might have been brought to the pandal by an animal. The police maintained that the investigation was ongoing and that other aspects of the incident were being examined. The officer appealed to the public not to spread rumours or rely on unverified information and urged everyone to maintain peace and communal harmony.
Why it is Hate Crime ?
This case is being added to the tracker under the primary category: Attack on Hindu religious representations. The subcategory selected is: Defiling religious customs. Sanatan Dharma is not a religion of one book, which is to say that while it has religious scriptures that form the central tenets of the faith, there are several traditions followed through thousands of years, mostly passed from generation to generation orally. There are several such customs and traditions that are followed by various Hindus and Hindu sects. Defiling of these traditions and customs is a breach of an individual or group’s religious practices. Such practices can range from dietary restrictions like not eating non-vegetarian food for a certain period of the year, not eating non-vegetarian food at all, not eating beef since the cow is considered holy in Hinduism, the sanctity of religious customs followed in the house (like many ISCKON devotees), etc. Any malicious action leading to the breach of such traditions or defilement of these traditions owing to animosity towards the faith or for the sake of activism stems not only from the lack of faith in the religion itself but also from disregard for the faith of the devotees who follow the customs/traditions and implicit bias against the faith, the tradition itself. Since these specific traditions are central to the faith of the devotees of that specific sect of Hindus, any non-compliance with these traditional rules would be considered a religiously motivated hate crime. This case is a clear example of a religiously driven hate crime because the sacred prasad at a Durga Puja pandal was desecrated when a piece of animal bone was thrown into the offering during the Navratri celebrations. The act targeted a sacred component of Hindu worship, disrupted religious festivities and offended the sentiments of Hindu devotees gathered to celebrate the festival. Durga Puja is a significant Hindu festival dedicated to the worship of Goddess Durga, who represents divine Shakti and the triumph of good over evil. Durga Puja pandals serve as sacred spaces where devotees gather to offer prayers, perform rituals and seek the Goddess's blessings. Prasad, the food offered to the deity and subsequently distributed among devotees as a sacred blessing, holds an integral place in Hindu worship. Hindu devotees observe religious customs to preserve the purity and sanctity of Durga Puja, its pandals and its offerings. As part of these observances, non-vegetarian food, including meat, fish and eggs, is avoided in worship settings, as such items are considered impure and are therefore abstained from to maintain the sanctity of the festival and conduct religious rituals in accordance with Hindu customs. Therefore, deliberately throwing animal bones into the prasad amounts to the desecration of a sacred offering and a defilement of the religious customs associated with Durga Puja. The act not only violates the sanctity of the prasad but also desecrates the religious atmosphere of the pandal, where Hindu devotees gather to worship the Goddess. Deliberately introducing animal remains into a sacred offering demonstrates contempt for Hindu religious traditions and disregards the sentiments of devotees. Such acts are motivated by deep-seated religious animosity towards Hinduism, as it targets the sanctity of Hindu worship and desecrates an offering central to the religious observances of the festival. Some might argue, as the police claimed, that the bone was brought to the pandal by an animal. However, this explanation does not adequately account for the discovery of an intact bone among the prasad. If an animal, such as a cat or a dog, had brought meat or bones to the spot, it would be reasonable to expect it to consume the food rather than leave the bone directly among the sacred offering. Attributing the incident to an animal without establishing how the bone reached the prasad diverts attention from the deliberate human involvement and downplays the desecration of a Hindu religious offering. Such an explanation demonstrates a dismissive approach towards the violation of Hindu religious sentiments and reflects institutional insensitivity towards the sanctity of Hindu worship. The conduct of the police in this case demonstrates an attempt to downplay the communal nature of the incident by attributing it to an animal without conclusive evidence. In many such cases, where the communal motive behind a crime is evident from the circumstances but not explicitly stated, the police deny that the crime was motivated by religious bias or maintain that there was “no communal angle” to the incident. Several factors are generally at play here. Many a time, the police downplay incidents of low-level communal crime because their jurisdiction and handling of the situation come under scrutiny. They may also deny a communal angle to prevent further tensions or a flare-up in the area. However, a police statement or media report alone cannot determine whether the crime was deliberate and a communal incident or not. Establishing the nature of a crime requires due consideration of the ground realities and the circumstances surrounding the incident. In this case, the discovery of an intact bone among the sacred prasad, alongside the account that a young man had thrown it there, demonstrated deliberate desecration. Attributing the incident to an animal without conclusive evidence whitewashes the religious dimension of the act and dismisses the violation of Hindu religious sentiments. The police's preliminary explanation must therefore be assessed against the available evidence and the circumstances of the incident, rather than being accepted as sufficient to dismiss the deliberate, religiously motivated desecration. Although at the time of writing this report, the perpetrator's identity is unknown, the act demonstrates deep-seated hatred towards Hinduism. Therefore, this case is being added to the hate crime database of the Hinduphobia Tracker.
Case Status
Arrested
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Unknown
Perpetrators Range
One Person
Perpetrators Gender
male
Sources 
