Locals call for no more religious ceremonies in parks following loud event in Brampton

A group of residents living near a Brampton park are calling on the city to stop allowing religious ceremonies in public greenspaces following a loud event this summer that drew dozens of drummers and attendees.

“It’s a public park and I would prefer it be used as a public park rather than we use it for religious activities, that’s my concern,” Bramptonian Harshdeep Singh told members of Brampton City Council at a meeting on Wednesday.

Singh was one of three locals who brought complaints of Brampton parks being used for religious events to council following the 3rd International Gita Festival, which was held on July 13 in Brampton’s Shri Bhagavad Gita Park.

The Hindu celebration saw dozens of attendees marching and playing drums with Singh saying residents who live in the area “could not use the park for hours.”

Singh showed a video of the event to council and asked that council consider changing Brampton bylaws to ban religious ceremonies in public parks.

Brampton is one of the most culturally diverse and fastest-growing municipalities in the province with more than two dozen different religions practiced in the city, according to data from Statistics Canada.

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Festivals and religious events are commonplace in Brampton throughout the summer. Mayor Patrick Brown has been a steadfast defender of religious freedoms, even spurring the city into the controversial move of providing financial support to groups fighting for religious freedom in Quebec.

The park was christened by the city in 2022 in honour of Gita – a 700-verse Hindu holy scripture originating from India – and features Hindu statues. The park was also the target of vandalism appearing to target members of Brampton’s Indian community in 2023.

Singh’s delegation was was received but no council members gave any direction to staff regarding the request to ban religious events from public parks.