A massacre is the one true thing coming to mind when hearing of attacks on any religious institution. Every man is entitled to his or her own religion and simultaneously his or her own belief.
Mortifying Menace
A series of attacks have taken place on Hindu temples in the US State of Texas. A succession of attacks on Hindu temples in Texas and Melbourne has triggered the feelings as well as concern of a massive crowd.
The Indian community living abroad has felt disrespected as they should and have been absolutely sure to fight off this devious, duplicitous crime. Hate crimes like this don’t have any concrete jail time but given the after-effects, it’s a shame that there isn’t.
The first attack happened on Shri Omkarnath Temple in the Brazos Valley, Texas, on the 11th of January, a Friday. It was raided by thieves and robbers who stole valuable pieces from the arena and left everyone in shock.
There were thankfully video cameras installed inside the temple and a person was seen going past the statue of God and hopping in to steal the donation box. The culprit was then seen using the cart inside the temple to wheel it out the door.
To all the Indians out there, it felt personal, like there was a sense as though someone was intruding your space and privacy. That was the only Hindu temple in the Brazos Valley, a place for all the local Hindus who worship and find a sense of community over there.
There was a break-in, a vile one, and it was apparent because the side window was cracked open and the donation box had vanished. All the valuables were stolen thereafter. Thankfully enough, the priest and his family who live right behind the temple, in an apartment are safe and sound now.
Pitiful And Saddening
A very similar incident was reported from Australia’s Carrum Downs city in Melbourne where Shri Shiva Vishnu temple was robbed and torn down with anti-Hindu graffiti.
The devotees who had come to the temple for the prayer had noticed the horrifying act during the “Thai Pongal” festival which was extensively celebrated by Australia’s Tamil Nadu community.
This happened exactly one week after the BAPS Swaminarayan Mandir in Melbourne was swamped with anti-India and anti-Hindu graffiti all over the place. It’s high time the government took some mortifying steps in order to control the menace.
The Indian Ministry of External Affairs, during its press conference on Thursday, told very specifically that the Indian community has raised this blatant issue with their counterparts in Australia and strict action will be taken at the earliest.
These actions have been outright condemned by all the leaders and political associations there and so by The Australian High Commissioner to India.
“Like India, Australia is a proud, multicultural country. We have been shocked at the vandalism of two Hindu temples in Melbourne, and Australian authorities are investigating”. This was tweeted by Barry O’Farrell who also tagged India’s foreign minister S Jaishankar.
