June 24, 2013- The Canadian Sikh Coalition (CSC) strongly condemns the recent attack that took place at the Laxmi Narayan Mandir in Surrey BC. According to police, video surveillance shows 2 men walking up to the temple in the early morning of June 23, 2013 and using a baseball bat to shatter the windows.

“The attack of a religious site is outrageous and tragic and we extend our support and solidarity to the Hindu community of Surrey,” stated CSC Director/Spokesperson Moninder Singh. “Our expectation is that the Police and authorities will take concrete and meaningful action to ensure that the perpetrators of this crime are brought to justice as quickly as possible as these acts have no place in society anywhere in the world and should not be tolerated. The Sikh and Hindu communities do not have tension in the lower mainland and statements such as these are a fabrication of over-sensationalized media. Both communities are closely linked and have spent over a century together on Canadian soil and have played vital roles in supporting one another. We ask that the communities come together at this time to show solidarity and let the police investigation take its course as it is being treated as a case of mischief.”

This attack comes on the heels of a similar attack earlier this month at the Guru Nanak Sikh Temple in Surrey BC, in which the perpetrator attempted to attack the Guru Granth Sahib (Holy Scripture of the Sikh Nation) and claimed to be a member of a Hindu organization. This was done on the day that large numbers of the Sikh community had come to pay their respects to the thousands of innocent lives that were lost in the June 1984 genocide of Sikhs in India. The hope of our community remains that it was an isolated incident and definitely not something that represents anything more than the action or thought process of one or a few individuals. We urge anyone who has any information in regards to these 2 incidents to contact the Police and help ensure that acts like this are not committed again.

Already, members of the Sikh community and leadership have engaged in conversation with members of the Vedic Hindu Cultural Society (VHCS). The CSC and the numerous Sikh Gurdwaras and organizations it supports, will also be making attempts to meet with members of the VHCS and use this unfortunate act as a catalyst to strengthen our ties and allow for open and regular communication.