Observing that there is substantial increase in attacks against Hindus and Hinduism in the United States,  Congressman Shri Thanedar warned that this was just the “beginning of a coordinated anti-Hindu attack”.

“Today I am seeing in the United States a substantial increase of attacks on Hinduism. A lot of misinformation is being circulated whether it is online or otherwise,” Congressman Shri Thanedar said on Monday.

At the press conference organised by HinduAction, Thanedar said that no action has been taken against those responsible for the attacks and no arrests have been made either. “We have experienced substantially more events of this kind in recent months. I have a feeling that this is just the beginning of a very coordinated attempt against this community and the community must stand together. The time has come and I will stand with you,” he said.

“Having practised Hinduism, having grown as a Hindu in a Hindu household, I know what Hinduism is. It is a very peaceful religion,” Thanedar further said, adding that it is not a religion that attacks others.

“However, this community continues to be misrepresented, misunderstood, sometimes deliberately so. I recently joined four of my Indian-American colleagues to write to the Department of Justice. You know, one of the concerns that we had was the rising attacks on places of worship,” he added.

“We’ve seen those happening in California, we have seen those happening all the way in New York and all across America. It appears to be a very coordinated effort to attack these places of worship, which has created a lot of fear in the community,” the Congressman said.

Thanedar and four other lawmakers – Ro Khanna, Raja Krishnamoorthi, Ami Bera and Pramila Jayapal – had recently written to the Department of Justice seeking an investigation on the recent surge in attacks on Hindu temples and places of worship.