Hindu temple in Ohio attacked with bricks, windows shattered during prayers

A Hindu temple in Ohio’s Greater Cleveland area was attacked with bricks while priests and devotees were inside, the Coalition of Hindus of North America (CoHNA) said.

According to CoHNA, the incident took place on Friday afternoon at the Shree Swaminarayan Hindu Temple Vadtaldham in Richmond Heights. Bricks were thrown at the temple, shattering windows.

The organisation did not report any injuries or specify the number of windows damaged. It also did not identify a suspect or provide information about any arrests.

CoHNA called on Richmond Heights Mayor Kim Thomas and local authorities to condemn the incident and urged police to take swift action against those responsible.

“We call upon Mayor Kim Thomas and @RichmondHtsOH to condemn such bigotry and @PoliceRichmond to take swift action against the perpetrator,” the organisation said in a social media post.

The organisation did not provide evidence establishing that the attack was motivated by religious hatred.

CoHNA said the incident occurred as Hindu communities in Ohio began observing Hindu Heritage Month in October, with Navratri celebrations also approaching.

The incident is among a series of attacks and vandalism incidents involving Hindu temples documented by CoHNA in recent years. Its chronology includes vandalism of a Gandhi statue at Shri Tulsi Mandir in Queens, New York, in August 2022 and graffiti at the SMVS Shri Swaminarayan Temple in Newark, California, in December 2023.

BAPS temples in Melville, New York, and the Sacramento area of California were vandalised in September 2024. In March 2025, a BAPS temple in Chino Hills, California, was defaced with hateful messages.

The incidents documented by CoHNA represent individual cases and do not, by themselves, establish a nationwide trend or annual rate of increase in attacks against Hindu temples.