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Arrest Of ISIS-Inspired Texas Teen A Reminder For Temples To Review Security Plans 

The Department of Homeland Security’s Guide for Developing High-Quality Emergency Operations Plans for Houses of Worship offers invaluable information for temples to start implementing a plan, if they do not already have one in place.

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The Hindu American Foundation (HAF) is a non-partisan advocacy organization for the Hindu American community.
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Yesterday a Plano, Texas teenager was arrested after he revealed his plot to carry out a mass shooting, in what is being reported as an ISIS-inspired attack. Among the targets reportedly considered by the suspect, were a school, local Hindu temple, and shopping mall. The latter was ultimately the chosen target.

Dr. Rajiv Pandit, HAF Board Member and local Dallas community leader, offered the following statement:

“The Hindu American Foundation thanks both local and Federal law enforcement officials for their diligence and work on this case. We’re grateful the suspect was caught in time, saving innumerable lives. While it has not been made public which Hindu temple was a potential target — there are over twenty in the area — the Foundation urges all houses of worship to use this incident as a reminder and opportunity to review their existing emergency operations plan.”

The Hindu American Foundation thanks both local and Federal law enforcement officials for their diligence and work on this case.
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The Department of Homeland Security’s Guide for Developing High-Quality Emergency Operations Plans for Houses of Worship offers invaluable information for temples to start implementing a plan, if they do not already have one in place.

ABOUT HAF

The Hindu American Foundation (HAF) is a non-partisan advocacy organization for the Hindu American community. The Foundation educates the public about Hinduism, speaks out about issues affecting Hindus worldwide, and builds bridges with institutions and individuals whose work aligns with HAF’s objectives. HAF focuses on human and civil rights, public policy, media, academia, and interfaith relations. Through its advocacy efforts, HAF seeks to cultivate leaders and empower future generations of Hindu Americans.

Also Read: Analysts Hopeless Over the Trade Talks Between the U.S. and Chinese Government

The Hindu American Foundation is not affiliated with any religious or political organizations or entities. HAF seeks to serve Hindu Americans across all sampradayas (Hindu religious traditions) regardless of race, color, national origin, citizenship, caste, gender, sexual orientation, age and/or disability.

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Hindus In Delhi Push For A Temple On The Ruins Of a Mosque

The Supreme Court has delayed hearings into the disputed site but hardliners have vowed to lay a foundation stone next year regardless.

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Supporters of Vishwa Hindu Parishad gather during a rally in New Delhi, Dec. 9, 2018. The group gathered thousands of supporters to demand the construction of a Hindu temple on a site where a mosque was attacked, demolished in 1992. VOA

Tens of thousands of hardline Hindu protesters marched in New Delhi on Sunday, calling for a grand temple to be built on the ruins of a destroyed mosque in a flashpoint Indian city.

Trident-waving devotees clad in saffron filled a huge parade ground in the Indian capital under tight security, where speakers warned Prime Minister Narendra Modi they would not let up until the temple was sanctioned.

Some of Modi’s supporters feel the Hindu nationalist leader has not done enough to raise a shrine at a site in Ayodhya, a city believed by many to be the birthplace of the deity Ram.

The site was home to a medieval mosque for 460 years until Hindu zealots tore it down in 1992, kicking off riots across India that left thousands dead, most of them Muslims.

Its future has been tied up in courts for decades but some hardliners want Modi, who is seeking reelection in 2019, to push parliament to guarantee the temple by law.

World Hindu Congress, Hindu
Hindus don’t oppose anyone, don’t aspire to dominate: RSS chief

“The gathering here is telling you that Hindus won’t sit back until the temple is built, and our wishes are respected,” said Champat Rai, the leader of the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) group that organized the protest.

Demonstrators chanting “Praise be to Ram” packed the Ramlila Maidan, a vast ground capable of holding more than 50,000 people, and filled the surrounding streets.

Some carried maces and tridents — weapons traditionally wielded by Hindu gods — and traveled great distances by train and bus to reach the rally.

“We have come here to protect our religion and Hindu pride. We want a temple for our Lord Ram,” Hitesh Bharadwaj, a teacher from Delhi’s satellite city Noida, told AFP.

The hardline VHP has applied pressure on Modi in recent weeks, staging a huge show of force in Ayodhya itself last month.

Hindu, Mosque
Photo credit: theguardian.com

A close ally of Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the group is spearheading a push to raise the Ram temple, and is calling for more protests as the premier prepares to go to the polls by May.

The BJP was on the margins until the 1980s when its top leaders, including Modi, backed a growing movement for the construction of the Ram temple.

Its advocates want parliament to introduce a law bypassing legal hurdles blocking the temple before Modi’s term ends.

Also Read: Delhi’s Air Quality Leads To Ban On Trucks And Construction

The Supreme Court has delayed hearings into the disputed site but hardliners have vowed to lay a foundation stone next year regardless.

“We don’t care about the courts. A grand temple will be constructed in 2019,” Sushil Chawdhary, a VHP leader, told AFP. (VOA)

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