The Ireland India Council has announced that it will not go ahead with the India Day festival at Farmleigh in the Phoenix Park this Sunday because of fears over safety, following recent attacks on Indians in Ireland.
Speaking outside Government buildings after a meeting with Tánaiste Simon Harris, the chair of the council Prashant Shuki said "we feel that the situation at the moment for holding India Day is not conducive, and we will review the situation, and we will announce new dates for India Day this year".
He said the council had considered the situation and consulted widely including with gardaí before making what he described as a very difficult decision.
He explained that while the advice is that people attending the event in Phoenix Park would have been safe "we are more concerned about actually, the outside of the event in the country".
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Speaking after the meeting, Mr Harris condemned the spate of attacks on the Indian community as "despicable", adding that they need to be "called out and condemned by all".
"The Indian community have made and continue to make a very positive contribution to Irish society.
"There's around 80,000 people from India living in Ireland, and I want to acknowledge the very positive contribution that they make," Mr Harris said.
He added that the Indian community in Ireland "very much felt that more needs to be done with younger people at school levels to tackle racism".
The council has organised India Day events every year since 2015 and this is the first time that there has been any disruption to the scheduling of the event.
Another group which also met the Tánaiste, the Federation of Indian Communities in Ireland, says an event it has organised on Sunday in Merrion Square in Dublin will go ahead.
The developments come after the Minister of State for Migration called for a stronger policing response last weekend, in the wake of a series of attacks on members of the Indian community.
There have been several assaults and incidents of racism reported by Indian people in Ireland, prompting the Indian Embassy to issue a warning to its citizens living and working in Ireland.
More than 100 members of the Indian community in Ireland took part in a silent protest at the Department of Justice last month.
Minister of State with special responsibility for Migration Colm Brophy said that the attacks were appalling, adding that he hoped that the incoming Garda Commissioner would prioritise the matter.
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The Catholic Archbishop of Dublin described the recent attacks on members of the Indian community as "truly shocking".
Archbishop Dermot Farrell said the unprovoked attacks had generated understandable fear and alarm among the Indian community.
In a statement, he noted the valuable contribution that the Indian community makes to society, including its "vital presence" in the healthcare system and funding public services through their taxes.
The Archbishop said that Indian families are playing an increasingly prominent role in the parishes and school communities of the Archdiocese of Dublin and that Indian priests, religious and lay volunteers are an increasingly important presence in the pastoral life of the Catholic Church in Dublin.
"That gives the lie to the vile and blasphemous claims of some who spread the poison of racial hatred on social media, and otherwise that their views are somehow protecting Christianity," he said.
The Dublin Archbishop said it was time to call out those who "peddled racial hatred" and stand up to those who "seek to divide our community through rumour and malice".
He called on parishes and school communities that have already given a warm welcome to Indian families who have made their homes here, to strengthen the spirit of solidarity, with all members of the Indian community.
"I call on everyone to support the gardaí in every way to confront and defeat those whose actions have contributed to the fear now being experienced in the Indian community in Dublin," he said.
The Archbishop's statement follows a call from Dublin's Church of Ireland Archbishop Michael Jackson on Friday, urging people to stand firmly against racism and to stand with the people who are impacted by it.
Archbishop Jackson, who is also chairperson of the Dublin City Interfaith Forum, echoed an appeal from Mr Shuki for a coordinated, multi-agency response to attacks, as well as a cross-departmental response to hate crime and youth violence.
Additional reporting: Ailbhe Conneely
