MELBOURNE, 10 April 2025: ‘Election 2025: Australian Hindus call for an envoy to protect their freedom’ was published by The Australian on April 7, 2025. The story by Helen Trinca has a subheading – The Hindu Council of Australia says Hinduphobia is an unrecognised problem and needs political buy-in. In the midst of the Federal election campaign, the story got a flak from the Hindus For Human Rights (HFHR) NZ & Australia, through a media-release, SAT received via email.
The recent issues relating to alleged ‘anti-semitism’ and ‘Islamophobia’, connected to tragic Middle East incidents, reactions or spillovers caught media attention. The politicians were quick to react saying both ‘Islamophobia’ and ‘antisemitism’ were unacceptable and grants released to douse the fire.
HINDUPHOBIA
But a new entrant ‘Hinduphobia’ has now come to the fore with the Hindu Council of Australia’s national President, Surinder Jain, telling The Australian that “Hinduphobia was under the radar because “we have dealt with it in a very mature way by talking to the police, by taking to the local members of parliament, by increasing the security in the temples. We haven’t gone out and started protesting or running around with posters.”
The Australian says, ” The home page of the council’s website is headed “Immediate Action Needed Against Hate Crimes on Hindu Temples” and claims “another shocking and unacceptable act of vandalism and robbery has been committed against the SMVS Swaminarayan Sanstha Temple in Tarneit, the eighth attack on this Hindu place of worship”. It calls for increased police surveillance and security measures to protect Hindu places of worship.”
It goes on to say, “Mr Jain said: “There are people who don’t like Hindus to live their culture and to live their religion, and they are raising all sorts of bogeys about Hinduism, about Hindutva.
HINDU COUNCIL VIEW
The Hindu Council of Victoria in a statement on 16 March, 2025, said, "Another shocking and unacceptable act of vandalism and robbery has been committed against the SMVS Swaminarayan Sanstha Temple in Tarneit the eighth attack on this Hindu place of worship. This relentless cycle of vandalism, theft, firebombing, and property destruction is not just anattack on a building but a direct assault on religious freedom, cultural heritage, and the fundamental right to safety for the Hindu community."
It is not clear if the demand for an envoy for Hindus is Mr. Jain's personal view or a view of the Hindu Council of Victoria, as its statement makes no mention of it.
SMVS VIEW
Replying to South Asia Times (SAT), Biren Joshi who runs the SMVS temple, Tarneit (when asked if the attacks were religious) says, " The first vandalism was in 2015 followed by other similar incidents and the motiv does not seem to be faith or theft as no cash is kept at the temple premises. But the cops say it is a case of theft.
Looks someone does not want us to be here as the surrounding area is all residential. We got anonymous phone calls telling us to dispose off the property as a temple can be set up elsewhere".
"This place has a planning approval for a SMVS temple, which will soon be built here," Biren Joshi said.
The Albanese Government in July and September 2024, announced the appointment of Ms Jillian Segal AO as Special Envoy to Combat Antisemitism in Australia, and Mr. Aftab Malik as Special Envoy to Combat Islamophobia in Australia, " separate media releases from the PM office said.
HINDUS FOR HUMAN RIGHTS VIEW
The HFHR statement - 'Proposed 'Hinduphobia envoy’ Will Cause Further Division' reacting to The Australian story says, an envoy on Hinduphobia misrepresents the threat of racism to Australia’s South Asian communities, will pit Hindu communities against South Asian Muslims, Christians, Sikhs and caste-oppressed communities and will weaponise legitimate criticism of Hindu nationalism, Hindutava and its role in Indian politics.
It further says the Hindu Council does not speak for all Hindus and questions the Hinduphobia concept, which it says is a recent concept. The HfHR "rejects the notion of systemic “Hinduphobia” in Australia with any equivalence to Islamophobia or anti-Semitism. We condemn all acts of hate based on someone’s identity or perceived identity, including one’s faith, regardless of the identities of the perpetrator and the victim. But we also strongly oppose wilful propagation of an exaggerated sense of victimhood led by certain Hindu organisations that seek to speak on behalf of all 'Australian Hindus'. We are also disappointed in the reporting of the The Australian newspaper for failing to engage on this important issue with other Hindu and caste oppressed organisations who might have a different viewpoint and deserve to be included in the conversation." "A special Hinduphobia envoy will only lead to more division. The clear need of the hour is a unified stand against racism of all kinds. We call upon whichever party forms the government to implement the anti-racism framework which is specifically about targeting racism systemically, and building on the progress made in recognising caste discrimination as a form of racism. It is important to note that the wider Australian community is often unable to differentiate between Hindus and other South Asian faith groups therefore it is often not easy to identify hate speech or discrimination as being specifically anti-Hindu.
In our view, one hate crime is one too many, and HfHR will continue to speak out against hate crimes directed at all communities, including Hindus, Sikhs, Muslims, and caste oppressed groups.”
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