Ram temple defaced with ‘anti-India graffiti’ in Canada; Indian Embassy calls for action
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A Hindu temple in Mississauga, Canada, has been defaced with ‘anti-India graffiti’ on Tuesday, sparking outrage.
White exterior walls of the Ram Mandir were spray- painted with slogans against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and praising pro-Khalistan leader Sant Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale as seen in the unverified photographs shared on Twitter.
The Consulate General of India in Toronto condemned the incident and said that it has raised the issue with Canadian authorities.
‘We strongly condemn the defacing of Ram Mandir in Mississauga with anti-India graffiti. We have requested Canadian authorities to investigate the incident and take prompt action on perpetrators,’ it said in a tweet from the official account late on Tuesday.
Patrick Brown, Mayor of Brampton, asserted that religious freedom is a vital Canadian value and an investigation is ongoing.
‘I am saddened to hear of the hate-motivated vandalism at the Ram Mandir Temple in Mississauga. Unknown suspects spray-painted the walls on the back of the temple. This type of hate has no place in Peel Region. The Peel Police and Chief of Peel Regional Police Nishan Duraiappah are taking this potential hate crime very seriously. 12 Division has carriage of the investigation and they will find those responsible. Religious freedom is a Charter right in Canada and we will do everything we can to make sure everyone is safe in their place of worship,” he said.
“Deeply saddened to have a Mandir in Mississauga vandalized. Spray paint was used to vandalize the walls of the temple. The individual(s) responsible should be found and held accountable. As of yet, I am directly in touch with Mandir management to determine a path forward,” Iqwinder S Gaheer, Indian-origin MP for Mississauga-Malton wrote.
This is not the first time such an incident has been reported in Toronto. At least four similar acts have been recorded since July 2022, the most recent one being on January 31 this year, when a temple was vandalised in Brampton.
The Gauri Shankar Mandir, a prominent temple among the Hindu community in the region, was vandalised with anti-India graffiti.