Is it true?: No. While it is the first Hindu temple in Abu Dhabi, it is not first in the country. The city of Dubai has had multiple Hindu temples since 1958.
How did we find out?: A relevant keyword search showed us other Hindu temples in UAE.
For instance, this photo story by The Quint shows photos of a “newly constructed Hindu temple in Dubai’s Jebel Ali,” which was inaugurated on 4 October 2022.
BAPS Temple confirms: When we reached out to the newly inaugurated BAPS temple in Abu Dhabi over email, their press team said that their temple was the “first Stone Mandir… in all of the Middle East (sic).”
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However, they confirmed that it was “NOT the first mandir in the UAE. For instance, the mandir in Jebal Ali was completed before the mandir in Abu Dhabi (sic),” the email read.
Other Hindu temples in UAE:In an article about a Hindu family in Dubai that has been residing there for almost a century, The Economic Times carried a quote mentioning a Hindu temple in Bur Dubai, which has…