India condemns vandalisation of temple in Canada, seeks action against perpetrators

Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said the matter has been taken up with the Canadian authorities.

The temple has been vandalised by unknown people with “anti-Hindu and anti-India graffiti”, in what is described by police there as a “hate-motivated incident.”

We have taken up with the Canadian authorities the hateful act of putting anti India graffiti on the walls of BAPS Swaminarayan temple in Windsor. We strongly condemn this act of vandalism.

— IndiainToronto (@IndiainToronto) April 6, 2023

“This is a very unfortunate incident and we condemn it. This issue has been taken up with the Canadian authorities with the same request that we made on earlier occasions that please catch the perpetrators and ensure that this does not happen again,” Bagchi said.

“I hope that Canadian authorities are able to take action,” he said.

In a statement, the police in Ontario’s Windsor City said Wednesday that it has launched an investigation into the incident and is looking for two suspects.

The High Commission of India in Ottawa has also strongly condemned the act of vandalism. “We have taken up with the Canadian authorities the hateful act of putting anti-India graffiti on the walls of BAPS Swaminarayan temple in Windsor. We strongly condemn this act of vandalism,” the mission said in a tweet.