In another racially motivated incident in recent times, an Indian couple were allegedly harassed by a Canadian man and his friends in Peterborough area of Ontario, Canada.
The incident came to light after a purported video from the day showed the Canadian man accompanied by his friends abusing, making obscene gestures and hurling racial slurs at the couple at a parking lot.
The harassment began after the Indian man approached and confronted the group upon discovering damage to his vehicle.
In the video, the men could be heard shouting racial slurs and calling the man “big nose” and “you f***ing immigrant”. One of the men even threatened to kill the man, saying, “Do you want me to get out of the car and f***ing kill you?”
“Hey big nose, you know it’s not illegal to go in front of your vehicle and h*** you. Did I touch you? Did I touch you, yes or no? Answer my question, you f***ing Indian,” another one from the group was heard saying.
The victim took to his social media handle and wrote, “My partner and I are still traumatised and I am posting so that it does not happen to someone else, and we want justice.”
The video sparked public outrage and prompted police to arrest an 18-year-old from the City of Kawartha Lakes. He has been charged with uttering threats to cause death or bodily harm and is scheduled to appear in court on September 16.
According to police, the incident came to light on August 8, prompting an immediate investigation.
Peterborough Police Chief Stuart Betts condemned the behaviour, stating, “Anybody who has seen the video in this case will understand that that type of behaviour is not acceptable in our community, nor any community.”
Deputy Chief Tim Mills emphasised the importance of reporting hate-motivated incidents, and said, “Clearly this is not the standard of acceptable behaviour in our city. We encourage residents to continue to report hate bias incidents or crimes. Reporting these incidents to police is crucial to ensuring we have the information needed to investigate and pursue charges when appropriate.”
The incident has sparked concern over rising hate crimes against Indian-origin individuals in Canada.
A recent report by the UK-based Institute for Strategic Dialogue (ISD) highlighted a 1,35 per cent increase in online hate speech targeting people of Indian descent between 2019 and 2023.
One social media user summed up the public sentiment and said, “Sadly, incidents like these show that hatred toward Indians is on the rise in some parts of Canada. It’s a harsh reality many face, and ignoring it won’t make the problem disappear. Time for authorities to step up and protect every community equally—no excuses.”
This comes in the backdrop of several incidents wherein Indian nationals have been subjected to racist attacks. Recently a six-year-old Indian-origin girl became the latest victim in the ongoing spate of racist attacks in Ireland.
As per reports, the six-year-old child identified as Nia Naveen, whose family hails from Kottayam in Kerala, was attacked by a group of children aged between 12 and 14 while playing outside her home.
The gang reportedly hurled racist abuse at her, calling her “dirty” and telling her to “go back to India,” before physically assaulting her.
Similar incidents took place against people of Indian origin in Ireland in the Tallaght and Clondalkin areas of Dublin.
In response to the rising number of such incidents, the Indian embassy in Dublin issued a security advisory urging Indian nationals in Ireland to exercise caution and remain vigilant.