‘This Is Just The Beginning’: Indian-American Congressman Flags ‘Coordinated Attack’ On Hinduism In US
Indian-American Congressman Shri Thanedar said it was the
WASHINGTON (US): An Indian-American Congressman Monday warned of “substantial increase” in the attacks on Hindus and Hindu places of worship across the United States, warning that this “just beginning of a coordinated anti-Hindu attack”.
Speaking at a press conference at the National Press Club in Washington, Congressman Shri Thanedar said: “Today I am seeing in the United States a substantial increase of attacks on Hinduism. A lot of misinformation is being circulated whether it is online or otherwise.”
Notably, Thanedar, along with four other Indian American lawmakers – Ro Khanna, Raja Krishnamoorthi, Ami Bera and Pramila Jayapal – had recently written to the Department of Justice (DoJ) seeking an investigation on the recent surge in attacks on Hindu temples and places of worship.
‘Just the beginning’
Addressing reporters at the presser organised by HinduAction, a non-profit body, Thanedar rued the inaction by law enforcement agencies who he claimed have not taken any action against those responsible for the attacks nor arrested any suspects.
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The Congressman said it was the “just the beginning” of coordinated attacks against Hindus in the US and urged the community to stand together.
“We have experienced substantially more events of this kind in recent months. I have a feeling that this is just the beginning of a very coordinated attempt against this community and the community must stand together. The time has come and I will stand with you,” Thanedar said.
Hinduism ‘deliberately misunderstood’
Shri Thanedar noted that Hinduism is a peaceful religion but continues to be deliberately misunderstood and also highlighted that the recent spree of attacks on Hindu temples has generated a sense of fear among the community.
“Having practised Hinduism, having grown as a Hindu in a Hindu household, I know what Hinduism is. It is a very peaceful religion,” he said, adding that it is not a religion that attacks others.
“However, this community continues to be misrepresented, misunderstood, sometimes deliberately so. I recently joined four of my Indian-American colleagues to write to the Department of Justice. You know, one of the concerns that we had was the rising attacks on places of worship.
“We’ve seen those happening in California, we have seen those happening all the way in New York and all across America. It appears to be a very coordinated effort to attack these places of worship, which has created a lot of fear in the community,” he said.
‘Hindu community living in fear’
Thanedar alleged that often local law enforcement enters into these investigations and that the probe goes nowhere,” Thanedar alleged, adding that it makes the community feel as if they have nobody who cares about them.
“That means that the community continues to live in fear. The community continues to live in an adverse situation with essentially no help from law enforcement”, he added.
Thanedar asserted that there is a need to coordinate efforts between the local law enforcement, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Department of Justice.
“A higher priority needs to be assigned to such hate crimes against this peaceful community,” he said.
“That is what we have asked the Justice Department to do and it is time for the whole community to come together and make sure that we demand equality, that we demand justice. We we will not tolerate such hate against Hinduism.
Thanedar said he has introduced a resolution in the United States Congress on “anti-Hindu attacks”.
“Through the resolution and the letter that we wrote to the Department of Justice, we continue to put pressure on this administration to ensure that the Hindu community has a right to live in peace,” he said.
Utsav Chakrabarti from HinduACtion described it as a historic resolution in the fight against “anti-Hindu crimes” in the US.
By: Gazi Abbas Shahid