Indo-Canadian community welcomes court order prohibiting pro-Khalistan protesters from disrupting consular camp
Toronto: The Indo-Canadian community has welcomed an injunction from a Canadian court prohibiting pro-Khalistan protesters from disrupting a consular camp at a Toronto temple on Saturday.
Pensioners at a consular camp held at the Khalsa Diwan Society gurdwara in Abbotsford, Canada. (Credit: Consulate of India, Vancouver)
In a statement issued on Friday, the Hindu Cultural Society, Shree Lakshmi Narayan Mandir said, “The Superior Court of Justice in Ontario has issued an interlocutory injunction prohibiting all protest activities, including physically preventing, or interfering with access to within a 100-metre radius of the Lakshmi Narayan Mandir in Scarbrough from 8am to 6pm on Saturday, November 30, 2024. This order aims to ensure the safety and sanctity of the temple premises and individuals during the specified hours.”
The order, reported by the Hindustan Times earlier, was passed on Thursday, and applies to the consular camp to be hosted by the temple and held by India’s Consulate in Toronto. The camp is for providing life certificates to pensioners.
The National Alliance of Indo-Canadians (NAIC) said the court order “must be implemented in letter and spirit across the country”.
The Canadian chapter of the Coalition of Hindus of North America (COHNA) said it was “relieved to see sanity prevail”. “This decision reinforces the right to religious freedom and peaceful assembly,” it said, adding, “It is unacceptable for political protests to serve as a cover to harass minorities and undermine their religious freedoms. It’s time for Canadian institutions to act decisively to protect all communities equally.”
The Hindu Canadian Foundation demanded “urgent accountability to uphold justice and safeguard religious freedom”.
The Canadian Organisation for Hindu Heritage Education (CoHHE) said, “It’s a precedent setting ruling that sends a powerful message to all Canadian politicians, police forces and, importantly to Khalistanis planning to protest at events at temples.”
The injunction was granted on the basis of an application from the Lakshmi Narayan Mandir.
The camp at the Mandir has already been targeted by pro-Khalistan groups, including the secessionist Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), which have called for protests against India’s Consulate in Toronto holding the consular camp there.
A similar injunction was granted earlier in November to the Khalsa Diwan Society’s Ross Street gurdwara in Vancouver, which later hosted two camps without reports of disruption.
India’s missions in Canada are holding the last batch of scheduled consular camps at various locations in the country over this weekend.
Other than the one at the Lakshmi Narayan Mandir, others are scheduled in Surrey, British Columbia as well as one in the town of London in the province of Ontario. The targeting of these camps resulted in the violent invasion of the Hindu Sabha Mandir in Brampton on November 3 by pro-Khalistan radicals, and its aftermath led to multiple arrests being carried out by local law enforcement.
