A purported video of masked protesters holding Palestine’s flag and draping a ‘keffiyeh’ — the country’s traditional scarf — onto the statue of Maharaja Ranjit Singh in Canada has sparked widespread outrage within the Indian community on social media.
We are outraged by the defacement of the statue to Maharaja Ranjit Singh in Ontario, Canada.Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the Sikh emperor, is universally respected in India as a defender of the nation by defeating Afghan invaders.
Attacking this statue is a hate crime. pic.twitter.com/ejJKJIFa4B
— Hindu American Foundation (@HinduAmerican) September 28, 2024
The purported video was shared on September 28, with the Hindu American Foundation condemning the act and calling it a “hate crime”. It said the protesters have defaced the statue of the “revered Indian king”, who was a Sikh emperor.
In the purported video, two protesters with a Palestinian flag are standing on the pedestal of the statue and draping a ‘keffiyeh’ around the neck of the horse. Voices can be heard in the background, as another person on the ground is spotted filming the act.
A number of social media users alleged that pro-Palestine protesters have been known to vandalise statues of cultural importance. Many others described it an “insult” to the Sikhs and a “destruction of everything not part of the Muslim brotherhood’s world view”.
In its statement, the Hindu American Foundation said: “We are outraged by the defacement of the statue to Maharaja Ranjit Singh in Ontario, Canada. Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the Sikh emperor, is universally respected in India as a defender of the nation by defeating Afghan invaders.”
“A statue of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the revered Indian King who founded of the Sikh Empire, was defaced during a pro-Palestinian protest in Brampton, sparking widespread anger and outrage within the Indian community worldwide… Attacking this statue is a hate crime,” the group said.
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