Congress senior leader and Member of Parliament Shashi Tharoor has expressed dismay over the act of vandalism at the chapel of St Stephen’s College, where ‘mandir yahin banega’ grafitti appeared.
The MP in a tweet said, “Dismayed to hear of vandalism at the chapel of St Stephen’s College, w/ “mandir yahin banega” scrawled on the door. Never thought a hate crime would literally darken the doors of my alma mater. The perpetrator must be found &an example made of him”.
Dismayed to hear of vandalism at the chapel of St Stephen’s College, w/ “mandir yahin banega” scrawled on the door. Never thought a hate crime would literally darken the doors of my alma mater. The perpetrator must be found &an example made of him. @DelhiPolice
— Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) May 5, 2018
Vandals struck Delhi University’s St Stephen’s College and defaced the door of the chapel with ‘Mandir Yahin Banega’ grafitti on Friday.
‘Mandir Yahin Banega’ refers to a socio-political slogan which is used in reference to construction of Ram Mandir in Ayodhya.
The vandalism was not restricted to the chapel door, a cross located outside the chapel was also found defaced with words ‘I’m going to hell’ along with an ‘Om’ symbol.
Students Union President Sai Aashirwaad said inflammatory quotes like ‘Mandir Yahi Banega’ were found written on the chapel’s main door, while an ‘Om’ symbol along with the words ‘I’m going to hell’ was found on the cross behind the chapel on Friday.
“The messages, however, were removed on Saturday,” he said.
The college administration had announced preparatory holidays for students from 28 April, with only those having practical exams still attending the college.