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Brampton mayor, faith leaders, police condemn vandalism at Hindu temples in GTA

Shri Gauri Shankar Mandir, a Hindu temple in Brampton, is shown here. It was vandalized on Jan. 30. Police are investigating the vandalism as a hate-motivated crime. (Supplied by Shri Gauri Shankar Mandir - image credit)
Shri Gauri Shankar Mandir, a Hindu temple in Brampton, is shown here. It was vandalized on Jan. 30. Police are investigating the vandalism as a hate-motivated crime. (Supplied by Shri Gauri Shankar Mandir - image credit)

Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown joined faith leaders on Wednesday to condemn recent acts of vandalism against Hindu temples in the Greater Toronto Area.

Vandals recently struck the Hindu temples of Ram Mandir in Mississauga on Feb. 14 and Shri Gauri Shankar Mandir in Brampton on Jan. 30. Anti-Hindu and anti-India graffiti was spayed painted in black on the outside walls of the temples in both cases.

Peel Regional Police consider the graffiti to be motivated by hate and they say the incidents are connected.

In Mississauga, the graffiti on the temple called Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi a terrorist. In Brampton, the graffiti said "down with India."

"Any act of intimidation, vandalism, or hate in a place of worship is despicable," Brown told reporters at a news conference in Brampton.

"And what I've seen across the GTA in recent months has been very cowardly, disappointing hate toward the Hindu community," Brown said.

"Our children shouldn't see that. They shouldn't see hate in our country, or our city, or our region," he added.

"I think it's important as leaders that we stand up and say to any community that is facing hate that there's zero tolerance for that."

Police haven't determined motive

Police said they haven't determined a motive yet for the two hate incidents, but members of the community believe it has to do with an ongoing fight by Sikh separatists in northern India.

Peel Region is one of several international locations where the Indian disapora has been voting in a referendum on whether there should be an independent Sikh state in northern India called Khalistan in India's Punjab region.

The referendum is a non-binding vote that aims to garner international support for Khalistan.

CBC
CBC

Peel Police Deputy Chief Mark Dapat said police have zero tolerance for hate-motivated crimes. He appealed for anybody with information to come forward.

"Absolutely, the feeling is that this is hate-motivated. That's why it occurred. Only the people who committed those crimes will be able to explain exactly what the motive was behind that," he said.

Pandit Roopnauth Sharma, the founder of Ram Mandir and a Hindu community leader, told reporters that the vandalism is disturbing the community's peace.

"What we are seeing in Canada today and this region are blatant acts of anti-Hinduism and it is becoming to a point where we cannot just say we will let it go. We have to take a stand," Sharma said.

"The police department is doing an excellent job. As of this morning they were still in our temple, downloading footage to try to find the culprits."

Everybody is invited to the Mississauga temple on Friday evening from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. to help wash the graffiti away.

"Washing away the hate is something that I've coined and believe that it will improve the situation. We're not going to fight fire with fire, but fighting fire with water is the only way you will extinguish it," he said.

Chris Glover/CBC
Chris Glover/CBC

Hindu worshipper Naresh Thakur, a devotee at Shri Gauri Shankar Mandir, said he was shaken by the threat against his people.

"Once you come to temple to pray and see that one, it was not nice, it was pretty painful," he said.

"They are certainly anti-Hindus for them to target the place of worship. Obviously, I don't see them from any religion per se."

Thakur said he thinks whoever is behind the vandalism supports a separate Sikh state in India. He doesn't believe it could be a Sikh person because he said no person of faith would attack another place of worship.