Temple management suspends priest for 'involvement' in Brampton violence case

In a major development in the Brampton violence case, the management of Hindu Sabha Temple has suspended a priest who was allegedly involved in activities of unauthorised protesters on the temple premises last Sunday.

Madhusudan Lama, president, Hindu Sabha Temple, Brampton, on Tuesday passed an order to suspend priest Rajinder Parsad. “Due to controversial involvement of Hindu Sabha priest Rajinder Parsad with non-permitted protesters on the Hindu Sabha premises on November 3, 2024, Hindu Sabha is suspending Rajinder Parsad with immediate effect,” reads the order.

NRIs settled in Canada has welcomed the decision saying it would help the Canadian administration in maintaining law and order and ensuring safety of all concerned. Sikh organisations and several other organisation have also hailed the initiative of the temple management to distance itself from any activity that promotes hatred among Hindus and Sikhs settled abroad.

SGPC member Gurcharan Singh Grewal said the stand taken by the management committees of Sikh and Hindu organisation had proved beyond doubt that the unfortunate incident that happened on last Sunday was not a attack on a particular shrine or community, but a confrontation among group of people with divergent ideologies.

“We appreciate that the temple management has termed the gathering on premises of the shrine as ‘non-permitted protesters’ and suspended priest Rajinder Parsad for his alleged involvement in instigating the protesters. The stand taken by the management will facilitate the Canada Government in maintaining law and order and ensure safety for all concerned,” said Grewal.

Harvinder Singh Khalsa, a social activist, also said praised the leaders of both communities for coming forward to check the tendency of spreading hatred in the name of religion. “The stand taken by the temple management in Brampton has provided a relief to those whose wards are settled in Canada and other foreign countries,” he said.

Bid to defame Sikhs: Takht

Amritsar: The Akal Takht has termed the recent Canada violence as a conspiracy to defame Sikhs and vitiate peace, maintaining that the community members could never attack the shrine of any other faith. Condemning the violence, Akal Takht jathedar Giani Raghbir Singh said it appeared to be a well-thought plan to defame the Sikh community. “No attack was made by Sikh community members at the Hindu temple. The governments and their agencies should desist from such ploys that vitiate the peace,” he said. Takht Sri Damdama Sahib Jathedar Giani Harpreet Singh claimed a “small altercation outside the Hindu temple was wrongly projected on social media platforms as an “attack by a group of miscreants, which was part of a conspiracy”. He claimed that an anti-Sikh campaign was being run for long. Meanwhile, the Dal Khalsa appealed to “Hindu brothers not to fall prey to misleading information being spread by leaders and the media”. — GS Paul