Hindu priest Sabha Mandir suspended after Khalistani protest outside Brampton Temple

A priest at the Hindu Sabha Temple in Brampton, Canada, has been suspended for spreading “violent rhetoric” during Sunday’s clashes, Mayor Patrick Brown said Thursday.

Protesters carrying Khalistani flags clashed with people at the Hindu temple and disrupted a consular event co-hosted by temple authorities and the Indian consulate on Sunday. Several unverified videos of the protest circulated on social media. The videos appeared to show protesters holding banners in support of Khalistan.

Sikh and Hindu Canadians want to live in harmony: mayor

Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown said in a post on X that the priest was spreading “violent rhetoric.” “This is leadership that is useful. The vast majority of Sikh Canadians and Hindu Canadians want to live in harmony and do not tolerate violence. Hindu Sabha Mandir President Madhusudan Lama has suspended the expert who spread violent rhetoric. The Ontario Sikhs and Gurdwara Council denounced the acts of violence in the Hindu Sabha on Sunday evening,” he wrote on X.

“Remember that we all have more in common than what divides us. In tense times, we cannot let the agitators fan the flames of division. The leadership of both Sikh and Hindu communities in the GTA does not want this division, hatred and violence. the mayor added. Brown asked people in the community not to respond to violence and hatred.

“Law enforcement will be there to respond. This is their job. We must remain the country where the rule of law is observed,” he said in his appeal.

Earlier, a Canadian police officer was also suspended after videos on social media showed him taking part in the pro-Khalistan protest outside the temple in Brampton.