At least 180 Hindu organisations and British Indian groups have written to United Kingdom’s Prime Minister Liz Truss, claiming members of the Hindu community were “living in state of fear” in the wake of communal clashes in Leicester and Birmingham, and sought security for the community across the UK, particularly ahead of Diwali.
“…Hatred towards the Hindu community is at an all-time high, to the point where there has been open violence, intimidation, and abuse levelled at Hindus through physical assaults, harassment on social media, and most recently through soft targeting in schools and the workplace,” read the letter dated October 14.
Clashes erupted between groups from Muslim and Hindu communities in Leicester last month, which were attributed to tension over a cricket match. While British media has reported that over 50 arrests have been made and several people were charged, the signatories alleged the violence was set off by “marginalisation of the Hindus”.
They have sought security both in the short-term and the long-term, including sufficient security during the celebration of Diwali later this month across the UK.
“Although the causes of what happened in Leicester are many and complex, the bottom line is that a marginalised Hindu community has been targeted through violence and intimidation,” read the letter.
Referring to the instances of violence in Leicester, the protests outside a temple in Birmingham and similar incidents in Nottingham and outside Sanatan Mandir in Wembley, the letter said some Hindu families have already left the neighbourhood.
The signatories have asked for financial support for the victims of the riots, including businesses in Leicester that have been vandalised, setting up an independent investigation into “anti-Hindu hatred” and its causes, and for the UK government to “recognise the threat of British homegrown extremism and how certain parts of Britain have become hubs of radicalisation”.
They have also blamed radical groups for stoking unrest. “It is worth noting that a small, but highly organised band of radical Islamists took full advantage of the community tensions that existed between this marginalised Hindu community and their Muslim neighbours, which had previously lived in peace,” the letter further read.
The signatories included BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir (Leeds), Overseas friends of BJP, Iskcon (Manchester), and Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), among others.