Melbourne Swaminarayan Temple: Defaced by Hate-Filled Anti-India Graffiti.
It is a highly upsetting case that has shocked the Hindu community in Australia and around the world and thus desecrated and anti-racist graffiti was recently left on the BAPS Swaminarayan Temple
Swaminarayan Temple in Melbourne Defaced With Hate Graffiti, Sparks Outrage
It is a highly upsetting case that has shocked the Hindu community in Australia and around the world and thus desecrated and anti-racist graffiti was recently left on the BAPS Swaminarayan Temple located in Boronia suburb of Melbourne. According to police reports, the vandalism was done on Sunday the 20 th day of July 2025 and the Monday the 21 st day of July 2025; it involved an offensive slur and the presence of the image of Adolf Hitler. This is also the manifestation of an alarming trend of anti-Hindu and anti-India vandalism of religious centres in Australia.
The graffiti which was painted on the walls and fence of the shrine of Shree Swaminarayan Temple on Wadhurst drive was very sinister with devastating content such as Go home and other racist comments. The disturbing event was that two other nearby restaurants owned by Asians, Kingsland Chinese Restaurant and Charles King Dumpling, were subjected to the same hate filled messages, and one healing centre on Mountain Highway added four in total.
Victoria Police have opened cases of such incidents and declared them as correlated, and assured that, such behaviour has no place in our society, at all. Similar sentiments were uttered by Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan who condemned the act as being hateful, racist and deeply disturbing adding that the act was not only vandalism but a clear act of hate targeting to intimidate, isolate and spread fear.
To the Hindu religion, this case of vandalism is very distressing. Makrand Bhagwat, President at the Victoria chapter of Hindu Council of Australia, spoke of the level of pain caused by the attempted burning of the temple, “the house of God, meant to be a place of peace, devotion, is being attacked in such a manner that it feels like an attack on our identity, our right to worship and freedom of religion.” The local interfaith networks have also come forward to give their support as they exercise solidarity with the communities that have been affected.
This is not a standalone event. In January 2023, the very same BAPS Swaminarayan Mandir in Mill Park (a different location of the same organization) was vandalized with anti-India graffiti, allegedly by supporters of Khalistani sentiments. This vandalism was part of a string of vandalism against Hindu temples, which included the Shri Shiva Vishnu Temple in Carrum Downs and the ISKCON temple in Melbourne. These anti-India attacks have raised serious alarm bells within the Indian-Australian community about the safety and rise of hate crimes.
read more – Swaminarayan Temple In Australia’s Melbourne Defaced With Hate Graffiti!
The Indian High Commission in Australia has condemned the vandalism repeatedly and urged the Government of Australia to act promptly in apprehending the culprits. The latest vandalism perpetrated against the BAPS Mandir points to an urgent need for heightened measures to protect places of worship and ensure the safety of all communities of faith in multicultural Australia.
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