Lawmakers are calling for a failed attack on the Sri Venkateswara Swami Temple in Aurora, Illinois, to be investigated as a hate crime. On Oct. 11, 2026, as hundreds of Hindu worshippers gathered for the first day of Navaratri, a celebration of the divine feminine over nine nights, a 19-year-old man traveled to the Hindu temple, armed with a rifle and body armor, according to prosecutors. A jammed gun and a tip from the suspect’s co-worker prevented a massacre. Authorities located a manifesto written by the suspect espousing white supremacist views.
U.S. Reps. Ro Khanna, a Democrat, and Rich McCormick, a Republican, warned in a letter to the FBI and DOJ that this plot “did not emerge in isolation.” They pointed to a broader rise in hostility toward Hindu Americans and Indian Americans. A 2026 Carnegie Endowment survey found that 1 in 4 Indian American adults reported being called a slur since the start of 2025.
