The worldwide Hindu community says it is aghast at reports of continuous vandalizing of Hindu temples in Trinidad and Tobago in recent months.
Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, in a statement in Nevada today, said it was shocking for Hindu communities in various parts of the world to hear about vandalizing of Hindu houses of worship in Trinidad one after the other, the latest being at Kali Mata Temple in Carli Bay on Wednesday, during the Hindu holy days of Navaratri.
It was reportedly highly heartbreaking for the hard-working, harmonious, and peaceful Hindu community of T&T to receive such signals of hatred and to experience the desecration of their places of worship which they held in high reverence. T&T Hindus had made a lot of contributions to the nation and society and continued to do so; Zed, who is president of the Universal Society of Hinduism, noted.
According to reports, Kali Mata Temple in Carli Bay, a pilgrimage site, was defiled on September 28, which included the smashing of the head of goddess Kali Murti, and the painting of warning graffiti. A few days ago, Lakrani Ganesh Temple in Penal was desecrated. Lord Shiv Temple in Carapo was vandalized twice in May and June, and a break in happened at Princes Town Shiv Mandir in May.
Rajan Zed urged Trinidad and Tobago President Paula-Mae Weekes and Prime Minister Dr. Keith Christopher Rowley to take this issue seriously and urgently launch swift action to put an end to such crimes and ensure such incidents do not happen in the future. He also urged Weekes and Rowley to visit the vandalized Kali Mata Temple in Carli Bay and meet the Hindu community to reassure them.
Zed further said as an interfaith gesture; Roman Catholic Archbishop of Port of Spain Jason Charles Gordon, Anglican Bishop of TT Diocese Claude Berkley, Caribbean Union Conference of Seventh-day Adventist Church President Kern Tobias, and leaders of other religions in Trinidad should strongly condemn such acts at places of worship and also visit Kali Mata Temple in Carli Bay to show their solidarity with the Hindu community.
Hinduism, the oldest and third largest religion in the world, has about 1.2 billion followers.
