New Delhi: A statue of Mahatma Gandhi near a temple was toppled and smashed by a group of men in New York, making this the second attack on the memorial. The incident occurred in the early hours of Tuesday, it is the latest in a series of attacks on Gandhi statues in the US, IANS reported.
The statue in front of Sri Tulsi Mandir was destroyed by six men using a sledgehammer and painted hate-filled words, around it and on the road. Earlier, it was vandalised on August 3 and knocked over, IANS quoted local media outlet Queens Daily Eagle. Police released video of the suspects aged between 25 and 30 years, they fled the scene in a white Mercedes Benz and in a dark-coloured car that may be a Toyota Camry used as a for-hire vehicle.
Assembly member Jennifer Rajkumar, the first Hindu elected to the New York State legislature, told CBS New York TV on Thursday, "When the Gandhi statue was vandalised, that really flew in the face of all of our beliefs and it's very disturbing for the community", reported IANS.
Further, temple founder Pandit Maharaj told New York Post, "To know that Gandhi represents peace and somebody would come and just target the statue and vandalise it, it's very sad".
The temple is located in South Richmond Park, an area with many people of Indian descent.
Meanwhile, a local volunteer the Cityline Ozone Park Civilian Patrol, watch group has sprung into action, on Thursday they tweeted that they have increased their presence at the spot.
"We increased our presence at Tulsi Mandir and were happy to see (police from) the 106 Precinct there as well. A big thank you to our four volunteers who were out for 7 hours overnight," it said in a tweet.
Rajkumar had brought together several elected officials, including House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee Gregory Meeks, to condemn the attack and demand police action after the first attack.
"Acts of hate have no place in our community and nation and the perpetrators need to be held accountable," Meeks was quoted by the Daily Eagle, IANS reported.
According to IANS, leftists and Khalistanis have targetted Gandhi statues around the US, sometimes by circulating petitions for removing them. Another Gandhi statue in New York City was vandalised by placing a shroud over it and sometimes they are damaged.
A recent report issued by the Network Contagion Lab at Rutgers University stated that there has been a rise in hate speech toward the Hindu community it blamed the White supremacists, reported IANS. Police said the suspects in the video appear to be White.
Rajkumar told local media outlet, QNS, "I have spoken with government leaders across the country. All are committed to re-doubling our efforts to combat anti-Hindu hate", reported IANS.