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A distinguished Hindu temple in California was vandalised on Saturday, sparking condemnation from the India authorities, which known as it a “despicable” act, urging US authorities to take motion in opposition to these accountable.
The assault on the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir in Chino Hills, a metropolis in Southern California, got here days earlier than a deliberate “Khalistani referendum” in Los Angeles in March – a non-binding vote for an impartial Sikh homeland in India’s northern Punjab area.
In accordance with a number of media reviews, the temple was defaced with “anti-Hindu” and “anti-Modi” graffiti.
Randhir Jaiswal, spokesperson for India’s Ministry of Exterior Affairs, stated New Delhi was deeply involved concerning the incident and known as for higher safety at locations of worship.
“We condemn such despicable acts within the strongest phrases,” he stated. “We name upon the native legislation enforcement authorities to take stringent motion in opposition to these answerable for these acts, and in addition guarantee sufficient safety [for] locations of worship.”
BAPS, the organisation that manages the temple, stated it will not enable hate to divide communities.
“Within the face of one other Mandir desecration, this time in Chino Hills, CA, the Hindu group stands steadfast in opposition to hate,” BAPS Public Affairs wrote on X.
“Along with the group in Chino Hills and Southern California, we are going to by no means let hate take root. Our frequent humanity and religion will make sure that peace and compassion prevail.”
The newest assault has drawn condemnation from Hindu teams within the US, amid rising considerations over comparable incidents in current months.
The Coalition of Hindus of North America (CoHNA), a US-based advocacy group, additionally condemned the assault, linking it to a string of current temple vandalism instances and calling for an investigation.
“One other Hindu temple vandalised – this time the long-lasting BAPS temple in Chino Hills, CA,” the group posted on X. “Not shocking this occurs because the day for a so-called Khalistan referendum in LA attracts shut.”
The Khalistani motion needs an impartial Sikh state carved out of India, and dates again to India and Pakistan’s independence in 1947. The thought was pushed ahead in negotiations previous the partition of the Punjab area between the 2 new international locations.
The Sikh faith was based in Punjab within the late fifteenth century and at the moment has about 25 million followers worldwide. Sikhs kind a majority of Punjab’s inhabitants however are a minority in India, comprising 2 per cent of its inhabitants of 1.4 billion. Sikh separatists demand that their homeland Khalistan, that means “the land of the pure”, be created out of Punjab.
The demand has resurfaced many occasions, most prominently throughout a violent insurgency within the Seventies and Eighties which paralysed Punjab for over a decade.
A number of Hindu temples in North America have been vandalised with graffiti and slogans associated to the Khalistan motion.
In September final yr, an indication board and driveway of the Bochasanwasi Shri Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS) temple in Melville, Suffolk County, was defaced with spray paint.
Vandals wrote “anti-Hindu” messages that additionally focused Indian prime minister Narendra Modi, the police stated.
The BAPS Swaminarayan temple in Toronto’s Etobicoke in 2022 was defaced with Khalistan graffiti. Officers on the BAPS temple in Toronto at the moment confirmed the graffiti and stated “anti-social components” had been behind it as they issued an enchantment for peace.
