Amidst the ongoing truckers’ protest in Canada, there have been a series of attacks on Hindu temples in the Greater Toronto Area in the last two weeks. The Hindus of Canada live in a state of fear as half-a-dozen temples in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) have been vandalised and robbed in the last two weeks, reports Hindustan Times.
According to the reports, six temples have been vandalised in the last ten days. In addition, the attackers have stolen cash from donation boxes and ornaments that were adorned on the stolen idols.
The attacks against the temples started on January 15, with an unsuccessful break-in at the Shri Hanuman Mandir in the GTA town of Brampton. The miscreants attempted again and have gone on a rampage since then.
Ten days later, on January 25, the attackers broke into Maa Chintpurni Mandir in Brampton and vandalised the temple. The miscreants went on a rampage for the next few days. Gauri Shankar Mandir and Jagannath Temple, both in Brampton, the Hindu Heritage Centre in Mississauga, and the Hamilton Samaj Temple, were all robbed.
On January 30, the Hindu Heritage Centre (HHC) in Mississauga was vandalised. Two miscreants broke in and broke the donation boxes, and ransacked the main office.
“Devotees and priests have been left traumatised with this incident,” the Hindu Heritage Centre released a statement.
Attacks on the temple are well-planned, devotees and priests traumatised
According to the security camera, each attack has been planned well. The footage shows that two attackers entered the temple between 2 and 3 AM. The intruders spent a fair amount of time within the temple premises, searching for cash in donation boxes or other valuables like jewellery adorning the deities.
The release from the Hindu Heritage Centre in Mississauga said, “Peel Police have confirmed to Hindu Heritage Centre that it is the same group of individuals who are breaking into temples early morning.”
Following the attacks, the temple has enhanced security. Several volunteers are now safeguarding the premises.
“Police have also promised to increase patrols around the temple. The community is very shocked and appalled with the high number of break-ins at temples,” the statement said.
Pandit Yadu Nath Sharma of the HHC said that he now feels scared when preparing for early morning prayer and keeps looking around to ensure no one is there. “I turn on all the lights and make sure to look out the windows before opening the temple,” priest Sharma said.
Shubham Bharadwaj, a Hindu residing in Canada, voiced the same concerns saying, “I am very disheartened to hear about temples being broken into. I was very surprised to see this type of activity happening in Canada. With the number of temples broken into in a short time, this is becoming a serious law and order issue that I hope the police will be able to solve soon.”
Truckers protest in Canada:
The protests began on January 29 in the nation’s capital, which later engulfed major cities across the country. The protests took a violent form after some of the protestors were caught urinating on the National War Memorial; one even danced on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. The truckers have now driven their truck all the way to Parliament Hill to protest against the vaccine mandates.
A controversy recently erupted surrounding the Truckers protest after the online fundraising platform GoFundMe had removed the fundraiser campaign for the platform over alleged violation of ‘terms of service’. The platform had withheld over 9 million dollars donated to the protesting truckers in Canada after Public Safety Committee had voted to bring GoFundMe to testify about the fundraising for the truckers on their platform.
