A Hindu temple in Australia's Melbourne was defaced with anti-India graffiti and pro-Khalistan slogans by an alleged group of Khalistani supporters.
According to a report by The Australian Today, the walls of BAPS Swaminarayan Mandir in Melbourne's northern suburb of Mill Park were painted with "Hindustan Murdabad" which means down with India.
Releasing a statement, the officials of the trust said, "We are deeply saddened by the anti-India graffiti at the gates of the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir in Mill Park, Melbourne, Australia by anti-social elements. The BAPS temple in Mill Park, like all temples of BAPS worldwide, is an abode of peace, harmony, equality, selfless service, and universal Hindu values."
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“This vandalism is deeply distressing for Victoria’s peaceful Hindu community, especially at this holy time," Evan Mulholland, Liberal MP for the Northern Metropolitan Region was quoted by The Australia Today as saying.
The attack on BAPS Swaminarayan temple which has disturbed Hindu and Sikh leaders in Melbourne has been condemned by the Kerala Hindu association in Melbourne along with Vishva Hindu Parishad of Australia.
A police complaint has been registered by the Hindu local body.
The report suggests that the Khalistan group also heaped praise on an Indian terrorist, Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, a widely perceived supporter of the creation of a proposed Sikh-majority state of Khalistan.
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Hindu Council of Australia’s Victoria state President Makrand Bhagwat said, “Any kind of hatred and vandalism against places of worship is not acceptable and we condemn it.”
A similar attack happened at BAPS Swaminarayan Temple in Canada by Canadian Khalistani extremists following which the Indian High Commission had ordered a probe into the incident.
