Less than a month after communal tensions rocked the city of Leicester, United Kingdom, over 180 Hindi organisations and temples have written an open letter to the UK Prime Minister Lizz Truss.
Reportedly, the letter written by Insight UK, a platform for British Hindus and British Indians was signed by 180 Hindu organisations and sought urgent action from targetted hate crimes against the community.
“We write to draw your attention to the recent disturbances in Leicester, Birmingham and other towns which have greatly distressed the Indian and Hindu communities in the UK. 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.
The letter added that the Hindu community feels like it is ‘under a seige’ and that many in the community have already left their neighbourhood due to fear.
“This Hindu community now lives in a state of fear. While some families have already left the neighbourhood, many more are preparing to relocate. 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 previously lived in peace.”
The letter said that the Hindu community has made the UK its home for over 250 years, despite accounting for less than two per cent of the total population. However, despite the low population, the community’s socio-economic contribution was ‘significantly higher’.
Read more: Leicester violence: Hindu-Muslim leaders call for calm after cricket match flare-up
To summarise the letter, the Hindu community in the UK demanded that an independent investigation be carried into the attacks to recognise the cause of anti-Hindu hatred.
It added that the government should help fund training for teachers so that they can identify and deal with anti-Hindu hatred in schools.
“The above proposals and/or recommendations will go a long way in repairing the damage that has been done to so many by an extremist few.”
The genesis
The violence first erupted in August after Pakistan defeated India in an Asia Cup cricket match. Several clips that went viral on social media showed violence breaking out after the cricket match.
Afterwards, multiple reports of targeted attacks and incidents of vandalism against Hindu symbols were reported across the city.
Read more: India condemns Leicester violence and vandalism of Hindu religious premises
The Indian High Commission, at the time, deplored the incident and urged the UK authorities to take strict action against the perpetrators.
(With inputs from agencies)
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