FIJI, October 2, 2021 (The Australia Today): Indo-Fijian Pastor Rajesh Goundar of El-Shaddai Assemblies of God Church in Lautoka is seeking forgiveness for his actions in demolishing a Hindu God’s statue at a home. A video of this incident has gone viral in Fiji where some people can be clearly seen breaking and removing the statue of Bhagwan Hanuman. Pastor Goundar told Fijivillage the owner of the house, a new convert to Christianity, gave him the consent to demolish the Hindu statue. He added that the Hindu woman was sick for a while and she asked him to pray for her.
The President of the Shree Sanatan Dharm Pratinidhi Sabha of Fiji, Sarju Prasad has condemned the act labelling it as “shameful and intolerable.” He further adds that if the Hindu statue was not acceptable to the owners of the property, they should have not destroyed or caused it to be destroyed. “Even if such an act was committed by a person in a private property and authorized by that person (by whom the Deity was installed) – I would have thought that that person would have asked a person of Sanatan faith or those who are devotees of Hanuman ji to take that Deity away and install in somewhere else. But to do such a shameful act is beyond tolerance.” Ashwin Raj, the Director of the Fijian Human Rights and Anti-Discrimination Commission, has urged all religious leaders to foster respect and tolerance.
https://www.theaustraliatoday.com.au/hinduphobia-fiji-pastor-demolishes-bhagwan-hanuman-idol-apologises-after-video-goes-viral/