‘Visa Cartel has its own visa temple’: What’s Hyderabad’s ‘visa temple’ that a US senator has targeted over H1-B visas?

Several US officials have targeted the H-1B visa programme, often accusing it of suppressing local wages and displacing American workers. However, a fresh attack from US Senator Eric Schmitt has gone beyond mere rhetoric.

Schmitt, in his latest tirade against visa fraud, targeted Hyderabad's Chilkur Balaji temple, popularly known as the "Visa Temple" or "Visa Balaji". He said US workers should not have to compete against a system this "gamed" that has a cartel and a temple.

Backlash followed after Schmitt derided India's "visa temple" in a series of posts and called it a part of a cartel. Whereas devotees visit the temple just to pray for their US visa ahead of their interviews or before departing abroad.

So, what is this Balaji temple synonymous with stories of miracles, and what did Schmitt say in his latest rant against the H-1B visa? We take a look.

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About Hyderabad's visa temple

It's an iconic 500-year-old shrine, where several IT professionals and students gather to pray for success in securing US visas. It is situated near Osman Sagar Lake, around 30 kilometres from Hyderabad.

Unlike many prominent temples, it has neither donation boxes nor paid rituals or VIP access, and devotees are not permitted to offer money, flowers, or coconuts.

Around 70,000 people visit this temple every week; however, there’s been a 20 per cent drop in worshipers since Donald Trump took office. Temple's head priest, CS Rangarajan, 58, said, "They express their anguish, they express their worry. I tell them, Have faith in God. Donald Trump is temporary, our Balaji is permanent," the Wall Street Journal reported.

It mainly emerged as Hyderabad’s "visa temple" during the 1990s, when thousands of engineering students and aspiring software professionals started visiting for their visa interviews.

The Balaji temple is known for its unique rituals. Here, devotees perform 11 circumambulations while making a wish, mainly for a visa. Once their wish is fulfilled, they return to complete 108 circumambulations.

Here's an example:

Tharunkumar Prapakaran, the software engineer, visited the temple during April last year. He walked 11 circles around the inner sanctum, a part of the ritual.

And then the miracle happened.

His phone suddenly got a message from his boss: “Have you got a call from HR?”

It was the good news Prapakaran had been praying for, and he received it a few minutes later. The software firm decided to move ahead with his application. He might be in the US soon.

“Even I would not believe this would happen. It’s a miracle," Prapakaran said, the report noted.

It is very common for visa applicants to flock to these temples to seek blessings ahead of visa appointments.

Schmitt's anti-India rant

The Republican senator is a longstanding critic of the H-1B visa programme. On Wednesday (May 13), he took his frustration with employment-based visa programmes such as H-1B, L1, F-1, and OPT out on X.

The Missouri Republican, in a string of pointed posts, alleged that renowned tech firms were laying off US workers while filing thousands of H-1B petitions for similar positions.

Citing data from the US Department of Labour, he claimed that companies such as Microsoft hired 82 per cent of foreign workers at salaries below the median wage level.

Schmitt wrote, "Big tech companies have laid off thousands of US workers while filling thousands of H-1B requests for identical roles. 82 per cent of those foreign hires came in below median wages. BILLIONS now flow to India for AI training instead, subsidised by Americans."

The senator continued his rant, citing some reports, describing it as a coordinated "global visa cartel" involving overseas recruiters, shell firms, inflated resumes, and kickback schemes. According to Schmitt, visa-dependent workers are treated "like cattle" in a system structured to keep labour costs low.

"This is part of a global 'visa cartel'. Networks recruit overseas, lie on resumes, file petitions, and treat workers like cattle. Shell companies and kickback schemes funnel cheap, visa-dependent labour into US jobs while Americans get passed over," the senator alleged, as per his tweet.

His criticism crossed the line when he referenced Hyderabad’s famed "Visa Temple." He claimed that the temple symbolised the vast scale and highly organised nature of the global visa pipeline.

"The 'Visa Cartel' has its own 'Visa Temple' in Hyderabad, which sees thousands of Indians circling altars and getting passports blessed for US work visas," Schmitt said on X, drawing intense flak.

The Internet strongly pushes back

Now, Schmitt calling a Hindu temple a part of a cartel did not sit well with Indians. They questioned how it differed from Christians offering prayers for something in a church.

"I can't believe a sitting US senator is so racist and bigot to instigate hate against a community, Hindus & Indians. What a low @SenEricSchmitt. Shame on you ! reflect on yourself idiot ! Don't ponder to racists on X. they are fake, real voters do not forgive you," an angry X user wrote.

"Is this any different from Christians praying for their dear wishes? ...When US visa has 100 yr wait while H1B folks are slogging away to make America great, the simplest action is to pray!" another user blasted, Times of India (TOI) reported.

"If someone goes and prays in a temple that causes the visa officer to stamp the visa? Is there a direct connection from the temple to the US consulate? What nonsense are you posting?" another user wrote indignantly.

With inputs from agencies