New Delhi: In Australia, the third Hindu temple was targeted in 15 days. An attack was carried out in the early morning of Sunday in the ISKCON temple located in Albert Park, Melbourne, Australia. On Sunday, supporters of Khalistan not only vandalized the temple but also wrote Khalistan Zindabad and Hindustan Murdabad on the walls of the temple.
Australia’s High Commissioner to India, Barry O’Farrell, has issued a statement regarding the vandalism of temples. He said that he was worried about the incident regarding the attack on the temple. They further said that Australia does not tolerate any form of hate speech or violence. The Australian government is investigating the matter. Also the perpetrators of such a crime will be severely punished.
Arjun Sakha Das, the priest of the temple which was vandalized in Melbourne, Australia, gave a statement stating the situation at that time and said that at around 4.15 pm another priest informed him about the vandalism. Another priest told Arjun Das that some people vandalized the temple and wrote slogans against India on the walls.
Priest Arjun Das said that it was very scary for another priest present at the scene to see this dhatna. Arjun Das further said that he lives outside the temple. When they reached near the temple after hearing about Dhatna, they saw scary scenes from outside. Priest Arjun Das further said that Khalistani supporters damaged only the exterior of the temple. The interior of the temple is completely protected.
Pujari Das further said that as soon as people came to know about this, they started receiving numerous messages from people in the community. At the same time, people who came to attend the first worship at 4:30 in the morning also saw the whole scene outside. Temple priest Arjun Das further said that being Hindus we are very worried.
Let it be known that there have been attacks on two temples earlier. Pujari Das said, We were also very careful, as this temple is not only famous in Melbourne but also one of the oldest temples. The priest of the temple further said that at around 9.30 in the morning, he gave the first information about this to the police officials. Police officials were very supportive and said action would be taken soon.
Pujari Das further said that the officials who are investigating the matter made several calls to me to get more information about it. Along with this, they also checked the CCTV footage of people living in the neighborhood.