Hindu temple in Windsor, Ontario, Canada, was vandalized with anti-India graffiti

Ontario News (The Hawk): A Hindu temple in Windsor, Ontario, Canada, was vandalized with anti-India graffiti, Windsor police said in a statement.

The vandalism has been labelled a "hate-motivated incident" by the Windsor Police Service, and two suspects are wanted in connection with the inquiry.

The statement claims that on April 5 police officers were dispatched to the Hindu temple to investigate a report of vandalism motivated by hatred.

"On April 5, 2023, officers were dispatched to a Hindu temple in the 1700 block of Northway Avenue following a report of hate-motivated vandalism. Officers discovered anti-Hindu and anti-India graffiti sprayed in black on an exterior wall of the building," Windsor Police said in the statement.

Video footage seized by police shows two possible suspects in the area shortly after midnight at 12 am (local time). "In the video, one suspect appears to commit the vandalism on the wall of the building while the other keeps watch," Police said in the statement.

The police confirmed "At the time of the incident, one suspect wore a black sweater, black pants with a small white logo on the left leg, and black and white high-top running shoes. The second suspect wore black pants, a sweatshirt black shoes, and white socks".

Residents who lives in close proximity to the temple have been asked by the Windsor police to check the footage from their home security systems between the hours of 11 p.m. and 1 a.m. (local time) in the hopes of finding evidence of the suspects. The cops have requested the people to call and inform Mortality Unit if they have any information regarding the incident. 

The Ram Mandir in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, was also vandalized with anti-India graffiti in the month of February this year. The Consulate General of India in Toronto strongly criticized the vandalism of the Mandir and asked Canadian authorities to launch an investigation and take prompt action against the culprits.

"We strongly condemn the defacing of Ram Mandir in Mississauga with anti-India graffiti. We have requested Canadian authorities to investigate the incident and take prompt action on perpetrators," tweeted the Consulate General of India in Toronto.

The Consulate General of India in Toronto critisized the past incident on twiter, happened in January in Brampton where a Hindu Temple "Gauri Shankar Mandir" was defaced with anti-India graffiti triggering outrage among the Indian community. 

The consulate officer in a statement said, "We strongly condemn the defacing of Gauri Shankar Mandir in Brampton, a symbol of Indian heritage, with anti-India graffiti. The hateful act of vandalism has deeply hurt the sentiments of the Indian community in Canada. We have raised our concerns on the matter with Canadian authorities." - Chirag Kaul