Close X
Thursday, November 7, 2024
ADVT 
National

Party leaders condemn violence at Hindu temple in Brampton amid India consular visit

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 04 Nov, 2024 11:50 AM
  • Party leaders condemn violence at Hindu temple in Brampton amid India consular visit

India's high commission in Canada is condemning violence that erupted Sunday as Indian consular officials visited a Hindu temple in the Toronto suburb of Brampton.

Videos circulating on social media appear to show demonstrators holding banners in support of a separate Sikh country called Khalistan clashing with others, including some holding India's national flag.

The videos seem to show fist fights and people striking each other with poles in what appears to be the grounds surrounding the Hindu Sabha Mandir temple.

The group Sikhs for Justice said Khalistan supporters had been protesting the presence of Indian consulate officials undertaking an announced visit to provide administrative services such as helping seniors access pensions.

In a release, India's high commission said plans for further visits to temples would be contingent on security arrangements from local authorities to protect the safety of officials, organizers and attendees.

"It is deeply disappointing to see such disruptions being allowed for routine consular work being organized by our Consulates," the embassy said in a statement posted to social media.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre and NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh all wrote Sunday on the platform X that they condemn the violence that occurred at the temple.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford wrote that the violence was "completely unacceptable and must be condemned."

Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown said he was "disappointed to hear about acts of violence" outside the temple. 

"Those found guilty should be punished to the greatest extent of the law," he wrote on X.

A spokesman for Peel Regional Police, which oversees law enforcement in Brampton, said nobody had been arrested or charged in relation to the protests, but said police will probe "any acts of violence or threats."

Sikhs for Justice alleged Hindu nationalists had provoked the fighting and has claimed Indian officials use visits to religious sites to find informants to target Sikh separatists. The Indian high commission in Ottawa did not immediately respond to the claims.

The group is asking that Indian consular officials be barred from undertaking work outside of their diplomatic premises, arguing external site visits "directly endanger the safety and security of pro-Khalistan citizens in Canada."

But Liberal MP Chandra Arya accused "Canadian Khalistani extremists" of attacking Hindus, saying they are "getting a free pass in Canada."

The clashes come as Hindus celebrate the Diwali holiday and amid mounting tensions between Canada and India.

Last month, Canada expelled six Indian diplomats over allegations they used their positions to collect information on Canadians in the pro-Khalistan independence movement and then passed the details on to criminal gangs who targeted the individuals directly.

India has long accused Canada of harbouring pro-Khalistan terrorists that New Delhi has asked Ottawa to extradite, though Canadian officials say those requests often lack adequate proof.

Tensions have not been confined to Ontario.

This past Friday, a judge with British Columbia's Supreme Court granted an order to establish a buffer zone around one of the province's largest Sikh temples in advance of expected confrontations between protesters and Indian consular officials this weekend.

The request came from leaders of a Sikh temple who said they expected "intense protests" at two Indian consular events, commonly known as "consular camps."

MORE National ARTICLES

Over 60 break and enter charges for Surrey man

Over 60 break and enter charges for Surrey man
R-C-M-P in Surrey say a man has been charged in more than 60 break-and-enters across the Lower Mainland and the B-C Interior. They say officers began investigating a series of residential break-ins where the suspect would steal garage door openers to later access the property.

Over 60 break and enter charges for Surrey man

Body found near railway tracks in Nanaimo

Body found near railway tracks in Nanaimo
Mounties in Nanaimo say officers are investigating a suspicious death of a man whose body was found near railway tracks yesterday. They say a passersby found the body around noon behind the curling club on Wall Street in a forested area.

Body found near railway tracks in Nanaimo

NDP caving to Poilievre on carbon price, has no idea how to fight climate change: PM

NDP caving to Poilievre on carbon price, has no idea how to fight climate change: PM
The NDP is caving to political pressure from Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre when it comes to its stance on the consumer carbon price, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Friday. Speaking to reporters in Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue, Que., Trudeau blasted the NDP on its equivocation on the consumer carbon price while responding to a question about the upcoming byelection in Montreal.

NDP caving to Poilievre on carbon price, has no idea how to fight climate change: PM

B.C. accepts change for psychiatric care after alleged attack by mentally ill man

B.C. accepts change for psychiatric care after alleged attack by mentally ill man
The report, authored by former Abbotsford Police chief Bob Rich, says the suspect in the stabbing, Blair Donnelly, was on his 100th unescorted leave from the BC Forensic Psychiatric Hospital on Sept. 10, 2023, when he allegedly stabbed three festivalgoers at the Light Up Chinatown Festival. 

B.C. accepts change for psychiatric care after alleged attack by mentally ill man

CSC staff member assaulted in a prison

CSC staff member assaulted in a prison
Correctional Service Canada says a member of the staff was assaulted at the Kent Maximum Security Institution. The federal agency says the staff member was taken to an outside hospital to be treated and evaluated.

CSC staff member assaulted in a prison

BC 1st province to sign Pharmacare agreement

BC 1st province to sign Pharmacare agreement
British Columbia is becoming the first province in Canada to sign a pharmacare agreement with the federal government. The agreement means B-C is the first province to have the federal government help fund hormone replacement therapy and diabetes expenses.

BC 1st province to sign Pharmacare agreement