Hindus dismayed at vandalism & hateful graffiti at Hindu business in Indianapolis

Hindus nationwide are reportedly perturbed after reports of hateful messages scrawled on the building, fire near the back door and grease spread on a business owned by a Hindu family in Indianapolis few days back.

Distinguished Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, in a statement in Nevada today, said that it was shocking for the hard-working, harmonious and peaceful US Hindu community numbering about three million; who had made lot of contributions to the nation and society; to receive such signals of hatred and anger.

Zed, who is President of Universal Society of Hinduism, urged administration for swift action to regain the reportedly falling confidence of the Hindu community; and to Indiana Governor Eric J. Holcomb, Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett and Marion County Board of Commissioners President Joseph O'Connor, to contact the area Hindu community to reassure them.

Rajan Zed also urged leaders of various religions and denominations in central Indiana, including Roman Catholic Archbishop Charles C. Thompson, to strongly and openly condemn this hateful incident and extend their support to the affected business. There are reportedly about 50,000 Hindus in central Indiana.

The scrawled messages reportedly contain references to Hindu deity Shiva, Om (most sacred syllable in Hinduism); and include “Hindu traitors”, “Satanists live here”.

Zed urged fellow Hindus nationwide to educate fellow Americans about Hinduism, the oldest and third largest religion of the world with about 1.1 billion adherents, and try to remove any misconceptions about it.

Last year, there were reports of robbery and violent encounter in a Sacramento (California) Hindu temple kitchen; and a cow’s severed complete head with a bullet to it was reportedly left at a Hindu cow sanctuary in Jackson Township in Monroe County of eastern Pennsylvania.

According to reports in 2015; 40 Hindu religious flags were burned outside a home in Queens (a New York City borough) on Thanksgiving Day; a Hindu temple was vandalized in Kitchener (Ontario) in November; sign of planned “Winston Salem Hindu Temple” in Clemmons (North Carolina) was hit with over 60 shotgun blasts in July; a Hindu temple was vandalized in Dallas (Texas) in April; two Hindu temples in Kent and Bothell (both in Seattle metropolitan area of Washington) were vandalized in February; a Hindu grandfather was roughed-up by police in Madison (Alabama) in February, resulting in partial paralysis. In 2014, there was anti-Hindu vandalism in Loudoun County (Virginia).