Bedazzled clutch specialists, Judith Leiber, have apologised and promised to cease production of a handbag in the likeness of Hindu deity Ganesh, which was made with leather lining.

“We are deeply sorry to hear that our Ganesh bag has caused offence to the Hindu community,” Lela Katsune, president of Judith Leiber Couture, said in a statement quoted by The Economic Times.

”Now that we are aware that the leather lining in the Ganesh bag contradicts the Hindu belief system, effective immediately we will be ceasing production on this style with leather lining. Going forward, this this style will be produced with a synthetic lining,” she added.

The bag, which was available for sale at Harrods, was quickly withdrawn from shelves after a social media campaign instigated by Indian-diaspora group REACH (Race, Ethnicity And Culture Heritage) in the UK.

Harrods responded to REACH via Twitter, saying: “Thank you for bringing this to our attention, we have removed this from sale [on] our site.”