Petition for the recognition of Hinduphobia in Canada gathers over 25,000 signatures

As it closed on Tuesday, a petition for the recognition of as against just 500 needed for it to be referred to the government for a response.

The petition, e-4507, was launched on July 19, and is listed under the Civil and Human Rights category, and was sponsored by MP Melissa Lantsman, deputy leader of the opposition Conservative Party in the House of Commons.

It was started by the Indo-Canadian organisation, Canadian Organisation for Hindu Heritage Education. Pleased with the response, one of its directors Vijay Jain said, “Considering this being the first petition from the minority Hindu community, and it receiving more than 25,000 signatures which is more than 2.5% of the total population shows it’s a matter of huge concern from the community at large. We are very happy to see such a fantastic participation from the community. This a matter of human rights for a minority Hindu community.”

The petition calls upon the House to recognise Hinduphobia as a term in the glossary of terms in the Human Rights Code to describe anti-Hindu prejudice and discrimination, to define Hinduphobia as denial, negation, prejudice or vilification against Hindus, Hinduism, or Hinduness and to raise awareness and address systemic and institutional Hinduphobia.

The petition gathered momentum after the secessionist group Sikhs for Justice (SFJ) released a video last month targeting Canadian Hindus of Indian origin. In a video that went viral, SFJ’s legal counsel Gurpatwant Pannun said, “Indo-Hindu leave Canada, go to India.”

“You not only support India but you are also supporting the suppression of speech and expression of pro-Khalistan Sikhs,” he said, adding they were “also promoting violence by celebrating” Nijjar’s “assassination”. He was referring to the killing of SFJ’s principal figure Hardeep Singh Nijjar on June 18. That murder has bedevilled relations between India and Canada after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s statement in the House of Commons on September 18 that there were “credible allegations” of a potential link between the crime and Indian agents.

Jain said earlier this year the city council in Brampton unanimously passed a similar motion recognising Hinduphobia. “We are very hopeful this should pass in Federal Parliament too,” he said.

Other than the SFJ video, there have been at least a dozen instances since last summer when temples were desecrated either with pro-Khalistan graffiti or posters attacking India’s senior-most diplomats in Canada.

Those acts have led to the issue of Hinduphobia coming to the fore in Canada, and the phenomenon was recognised by Canadian leaders. In April this year, Pierre Poilievre, leader of the principal opposition Conservative Party, told the news outlet Prime Asia, “We have to stop Hinduphobia and nasty comments that are made about Hindus and the vandalism and other violence targeting Hindu Canadians. This is totally unacceptable.”

In January, Liberal Party MP Chandra Arya, speaking in the House, said, “Like Islamophobia and anti-Semitism resulting in hate crimes against our mosques and synagogues causing pain to our Muslim and Jewish brothers and sisters, Hindu Canadians are experiencing the same pain due to rising Hinduphobia.”

Jain was hopeful that feeling was shared by Ottawa and it would introduce legislation in this regard before the House.

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