Mahatma Gandhi’s statue sprayed with pro-Khalistan graffiti in Toronto

India issued a formal diplomatic communiqué, note verbale, on Wednesday afternoon to Global Affairs Canada, the country’s foreign minister, seeking urgent police investigation and action to arrest those responsible for the vandalisation.

Toronto: India on Wednesday expressed its outrage to the Canadian government after a statue of Mahatma Gandhi was vandalised in Toronto.

India on Wednesday expressed its outrage to the Canadian government after a statue of Mahatma Gandhi was vandalised in Toronto.

The desecration of the statue, located at the Vishnu Mandir in Richmond Hill in the Greater Toronto Area or GTA, left congregants in a state of shock and the Indo-Canadian community irate.

The incident occurred in the early hours of Wednesday. The 20-foot-tall bronze statue is situated in the Peace Park at the temple. “We never had problems like this before. Peace has been pierced and destroyed,” Robin Doobay, a member of the temple executive told the Hindustan Times.

The statue was sprayed with pro-Khalistan graffiti along with abusive terms aimed at Gandhi.

A video of the incident, apparently taken during the night when it was vandalised, was shared on social media, including with this correspondent, by some Pakistan-origin handles.

Reacting to the episode, the Indian high commission in Ottawa tweeted, “We are deeply anguished by this hate crime that seeks to terrorize the Indian community. It has led to increased concern and insecurity in the Indian community here. We have approached the Canadian government to investigate and ensure perpetrators are brought to justice swiftly.”

India’s Consulate in Toronto said, “This criminal, hateful act of vandalism has deeply hurt the sentiments of the Indian community in Canada. We are in contact with Canadian authorities to investigate this hate crime.”

India issued a formal diplomatic communiqué, note verbale, on Wednesday afternoon to Global Affairs Canada, the country’s foreign minister, seeking urgent police investigation and action to arrest those responsible for the vandalisation. The message stressed the incident had caused “a sense of panic and insecurity” within the Indo-Canadian community.

“We have sent a strong note to Canadian Federal Government,” said a senior Indian official. “Consulate has taken up with Ontario Government and we are encouraging local community to file charges. This is a hate crime that glorifies terrorism.”

Outraged by the desecration, the National Alliance of Indo-Canadians condemned the vandalism and said, “It must be denounced by all right thinking Canadians.”

While pro-Khalistan slogans were sprayed on the statue, an Indian official told HT this may have been a ploy to divide Hindus and Sikhs in Canada. The official added that they informed Ottawa “in no uncertain terms” that law enforcement has to identify and book the culprits so the truth of the matter emerges at the earliest.

This is not the first time a statue of Mahatma Gandhi has been targeted in North America. In February this year, such a statue was decapitated in New York, while in January 2021, another was vandalised in Davis, California.