Digital Desk: Following the vandalism of the Shri Shiva Vishnu Temple in Carrum Downs, anti-India graffiti was daubed on a third Hindu temple on Monday in Melbourne’s Albert Park, according to The Australia Today.
In the wee hours of Monday morning, the management of Melbourne’s International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) temple, commonly known as the Hare Krishna Temple, discovered anti-Indian graffiti on the temple walls.
Bhakta Das, the director of communication for the ISKCON temple, said in an interview with The Australia Today that they had reported the incident to Victoria Police because they were “shocked” by the lack of respect for the house of worship.
“We are shocked and outraged with this blatant disregard for respect for the place of worship,” Das said.
According to the news report, IT expert and devotee of the ISKCON temple Shivesh Pandey claimed Victoria Police had failed to take any action against those pursuing a “hate-filled agenda” against the Hindu community.
“In the last two weeks, Victoria Police has failed to take any decisive action against the people who are running their hate-filled agenda against the peaceful Hindu community,” The Australia Today quoted Shivesh Pandey as saying.
According to the news report, the attack on the ISKCON Temple occurred two days after Victorian representatives of various faiths met urgently with the Victorian Multicultural Commission. In a statement, the Victorian Multicultural Commission denounced the destruction of Hindu temples in Mill Park and Carrum Downes.
Earlier, anti-Hindu graffiti was written on the Shri Shiva Vishnu Temple in Australia’s Carrum Downs. The incident was discovered on January 16 when temple visitors arrived for “darshan” during the three-day “Thai Pongal” holiday being observed by the Tamil Hindu community in Australia.
Anti-Indian elements vandalised the BAPS Swaminarayan Temple on January 12 in Melbourne’s Mill Park neighbourhood, according to a story in The Australia Today. Anti-Indian sentiments were inscribed on the temple’s walls.
Patel, a bystander who did not want to provide his first name to The Australia Today, said how he visited the site on Thursday and saw the temple’s walls had been vandalized.
“When I reached the temple today morning all walls were colored with graffiti of Khalistani hatred towards Hindus.” The Australia Today quoted Patel as saying.
He added, “I am angry, scared and dismayed by the blatant display of religious hatred towards the peaceful Hindu community by Khalistan supporters.”
In a statement to The Australia Today, BAPS Swaminarayan Mandir stated that they are “deeply saddened and shocked by these acts of vandalism and hate.” It said that they have remained committed to “peaceful coexistence and dialogue to all faiths.”