LONDON, ENGLAND, July 4, 2005: The Immigration Minister, Tony McNulty, MP, invited on 30th June 2005, Anil Bhanot, HCUK General Secretary, and Dr. Narayan Rao, HCUK Director and Vice Chair of the Interfaith Network, to talk about the Pujari issue (a pujari is a priest who conducts the worship in a Hindu temple). The issue centers on whether pujaris imported from overseas should be required to pass a high-level English language test. Dr. Rao requested that the Ministers of Religion category should be split into two, one for a pastoral role and the second for a non-pastoral role, the latter applicable to the pujaris.
Mr. Bhanot explained that the compulsion to require the English test restricts the scholarly pujaris whose job is purely a devotional one focusing on the most essential act of Deity worship. The worship of the Deity necessitates the highest standards of spiritual knowledge and devotion, and Hindu temples therefore need the right scholarly pujaris who are well versed in Sanskrit and in whom the Hindu community can have full confidence that they can perform this spiritual job correctly. Some of these scholarly pujaris may return to India after a couple of years, in order to continue with their spiritual advancement there, but those who wish to stay can comply with the tests here as required at the time of extending their visas.