A Hindu temple has been vandalised with “anti-India graffiti” in Windsor city in Canada’s Ontario, the police said on Wednesday.
In a statement, the Windsor Police Service said that they are investigating the vandalism at the temple in Northway Avenue as “a hate-motivated incident” and that the authorities are on the lookout for two suspects.
“Officers discovered anti-Hindu and anti-India graffiti sprayed in black on an exterior wall of the building,” the statement said. “Through investigation, officers obtained a video that shows two suspects in the area just after 12 am. In the video, one suspect appears to commit the vandalism on the wall of the building while the other keeps watch.”
The police asked residents living in the vicinity of the temple to check their CCTV footage between 11 pm to 1 am for evidence about the suspects.
“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 police said. “The second suspect wore black pants, a sweatshirt black shoes, and white socks.”
The police urged those with any information about the incident to call the Mortality Unit or Crime Stoppers, a programme that encourages the public to report incidents through anonymous tips.
In February, walls of a Hindu temple in Mississauga, a city located next to Toronto, had been spray-painted with slogans criticising Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The Consulate General of India in Toronto had urged Canadian authorities to investigate the case and take strict action against those responsible.
In September too, a temple in Toronto was vandalised with “anti-India graffiti”.
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