Hindu temple vandalised in US
Washington, Jan 31: In a hate crime, a Hindu temple has been vandalised in the US state of Kentucky by miscreants who sprayed black paint on the deity and left a knife stabbed into a chair in the main hall.
The incident happened between Sunday night and Tuesday morning at the Swaminarayan Temple in the Louisville city.
According to local media report, vandalism resulted in deity image sprayed with black paint, broken windows, walls spray-painted with inappropriate messages and graffiti. A knife was stabbed in the chair, and cabinets were emptied.
The incident has sent shock waves through the Indian-American community in Louisville Kentucky.
Authorities are investigating the incident as a hate crime.
Condemning the incident of vandalism, Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer called upon the city residents to stand up against this hatred.
"Anytime we see hatred or bigotry we will stand against it. The cowards who did this have only given our community more fuel and determination to embrace compassion, understanding, and each other," Fischer said as he visited the vandalised temple Wednesday.
"Sometime between the end of services at the Swaminarayan Temple on Bardstown Road on Sunday and the time a repairman arrived on Tuesday morning, vandals broke into a window and vandalised spots throughout the building," he said.
The vandalism of this temple, Fischer said is another example of the work "we still have to do as a city and a nation to make sure we live to our ideals of equality, of a country where everyone is treated with the respect we all deserve."
Fischer said that the vandals wrote "repugnant messages of hate."
"Regardless of what religion you are, this should not happen," Raj Patel from the Swaminarayan temple said.
"We come here to worship. We should not have to turn our backs to see who is behind us, but we should be happy to come here and worship in peace," he added.
Describing the desecration as "heartbreaking", Louisville Metro Police Department Chief Steve Conrad told reporters that the police will provide additional security to the temple.
"What I'm here to do today is to assure everyone that attends this temple that we will do our best to find and hold accountable the person or persons who committed this vandalism and this hate crime," Conrad said.
Kentucky State Representative Nima Kulkarni, the first Indian-American elected to the Kentucky General Assembly, said the vandalism was an "act of intimidation designed to weaken our faith and community".
There has been a number of such incidents across the US in previous years.
In April 2015, a Hindu temple in north Texas has been vandalised with nasty images spray-painted on its walls.
In February 2015, Hindu temples in Kent and the Seattle Metropolitan area were also vandalised.
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Nitish announces Rajya Sabha foray, ending tenure as Bihar's longest-serving CM
Patna (PTI): JD(U) chief Nitish Kumar on Thursday announced that he will be contesting the Rajya Sabha polls, bringing the curtain down on his tenure as the longest-serving CM of Bihar.
Kumar, who has been the CM since 2005, said the new government that will be formed in the state will have his full cooperation and guidance.
"For more than two decades, you have consistently placed your trust and support in me, and it is on the strength of that trust that we have served Bihar and all of you with complete dedication. It was the power of your trust and support that has enabled Bihar today to present a new dimension of development and dignity," he said, expressing gratitude to the people of the state.
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Kumar said that from the very beginning of his parliamentary journey, he wanted to become a member of both Houses of the Bihar legislature as well as both Houses of Parliament.
"In keeping with this aspiration, I seek to become a member of the Rajya Sabha in the elections being held this time," he said.
"I want to assure you with complete honesty that my relationship with you will continue in the future as well, and my resolve to work together with you to build a developed Bihar will remain steadfast. The new government that will be formed will have my full cooperation and guidance," he added.
With Kumar stepping down after leading the ruling NDA to a landslide victory in the 2025 assembly elections, a BJP leader is expected to take over the top post.
If that happens, Bihar will get its first BJP chief minister -- the only Hindi heartland state where the party has not held the office so far.
Five Rajya Sabha seats from Bihar will go to the polls on March 16, and Thursday is the last day for filing nominations.
Kumar's election to the Upper House of Parliament is all but certain, as per the tally in the state legislature.
