Strongly condemning the defacing of a Hindu temple in Canada, India on Wednesday asked authorities in the country to investigate the incident and take swift action against the perpetrators.
The Ram Mandir in Mississauga city was vandalised with anti-India slogans, sending shockwaves across the Indian community.
“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,” the Consulate General of India in Toronto tweeted early on Wednesday.
The incident also evoked sharp reactions from Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown, who said that hate has no place in Canada, and police are investigating it. “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,” Mayor Brown tweeted on Wednesday.
“The @PeelPolice & @ChiefNish (Chief of Peel Regional Police Nishan Duraiappah) are taking this potential hate crime very seriously. 12 Division has carried out the investigation & they will find those responsible. Religious freedom is a Charter right in Canada & we will do everything we can to make sure everyone is safe in their place of worship,” Brown added.
Starting 2023, a string of attacks has been unleashed upon Hindu temples across Canada with close to half-a-dozen incidents of vandalism, spiteful graffiti, break-ins and burglaries.
