Melbourne (TIP): Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison condemned the desecration of the statue of Mahatma Gandhi in Melbourne a day after it was unveiled by him.

Morrison in a statement said he was “devastated” to hear that the statue of Mahatma Gandhi at the Australia Indian Community Centre in Rowville, Victoria, had been vandalised after it was unveiled on Friday.

The Australian PM was trenchant in his criticism. “Australia is the most successful multicultural and immigration nation in the world and attacks on cultural monuments will not be tolerated. It is disgraceful and extremely disappointing to see this level of disrespect. Whoever is responsible for this has shown great disrespect to the Australian-Indian community and should be ashamed,” he told the local “South Asia Times”.

This is the first statue of Gandhi in Victoria and was donated by the Government of India. India’s Consul General in Melbourne Raj Kumar has also condemned the act. “When I saw the pictures I was really shocked. I could not believe this could happen here in Australia. Whoever has done this, is not of sound mind,’’ he told the SA Times. (TNS)