Melbourne: A life-sized bronze statue of Mahatma Gandhi has been vandalised in Melbourne in an act PM Scott Morrison strongly condemned as “disgraceful”, triggering shock and disappointment among the Indian-Australian community. The incident happened hours after Morrison unveiled the statue at the Australian Indian Community Centre in Rowville on Friday alongwith the Consul General of India Raj Kumar and other Australian leaders as part of a celebration of 75 years of India’s Independence. The statue was gifted to Australia by the Indian government.
“It is disgraceful and extremely disappointing to see this level of disrespect,” Morrison was quoted as saying in the report. He said that attacks on cultural monuments would not be tolerated in a country which is the most successful multicultural and immigration nation in the world. “Whoever is responsible for this has shown great disrespect to the Australian Indian community and should be ashamed,” he said.
Victoria police said an unknown number of offenders used a power tool to decapitate the statue sometime between Friday and on Saturday, according to ABC News. The police said detectives were investigating the matter and are appealing for witnesses to come forward with information. The Indian community in the city expressed their shock over the incident, terming it as a “low act”.
