At Federation Square in Melbourne, Australia, 30 to 40 armed Khalistanis attacked unarmed Indians carrying the Indian flag. The tragic incident took place on Sunday when the armed men were seen parading through Melbourne with swords and other specially crafted weapons.
Instantaneously, images of the entire incident began to circulate online. Following reports that Indian-Australians planned to organise a peaceful protest outside Federation Square against the country’s escalating pro-Khalistan activities, the attack occurred.
“30-40 armed Khalistanis,with specially designed weapons,from 2 fronts,attacked unarmed Indians walking peacefully with flags at Federation Square today.Disgraceful incompetence of @VictoriaPolice & @FedSquare in allowing this terror-linked cult to practice their brand of violence”, a Twitter handle @austhindu wrote on the social networking site.
According to The Australia Today, the Indian diaspora in the country informed the Victoria Police about the rise in pro-Khalistan activities in the country.
Meanwhile, BJP spokesperson Manjinder Singh Sirsa condemned the Sunday attack on Twitter. “I strongly condemn anti India activities by pro Khalistani in Australia. Anti-social elements that are trying to disrupt the peace & harmony of the country with these activities, must be dealt with strongly and culprits must be brought to books”, Sirsa said.
Condemning the attack, the police informed that as of now 2 people have been arrested following the violent attack. The two arrested men are in their 30s and each has been issued with a penalty notice for “riotous behaviour”. The Victoria Police assured that both the incidents at the Kahlistan Referendum event and the Federation square event were quickly responded to. In the statement, the authorities revealed that the Melbourne East Neighbourhood Policing Team will continue to investigate the matter. The injured parties were immediately treated at the scene by ambulance paramedics.
The High Commission of India in the Australian capital of Canberra recently took cognizance of the recent vandalism of three Hindu temples in Melbourne in the past few weeks and stated that the acts displayed “clear attempts” by perpetrators to instill hate and divide the peaceful Indian diaspora.
The commission issued a press release in which it stated that it “strongly condemns the deeply disturbing incidents of vandalism, including the recent vandalism of three Hindu temples in Melbourne. These are blatant attempts to sow hatred and division among the peaceful, multireligious Indian community in Australia. According to the statement, supporters of Khalistan are “stepping up their activities in Australia, actively aided & abetted by members of proscribed terrorist organisations such as the SFJ & other inimical agencies from outside Australia, have been evident for some time.” It went on to say that the recent attacks on the Hindu temples of Sri Sri Radha Ballabha ISCKON, Shri Shiva Vishnu Temple, and BAPS Swaminarayan Mandir were evidence of this.
