Temples, gurdwaras on campaign trail
Some call it “minority appeasement UK style”, but come elections and Hindu temples and gurdwaras get visits from top leaders to court the increasingly influential votes of the British Indian community.
Prime Minister Theresa May visited the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan temple with her husband and performed the ‘abhishek’ ritual, while Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn was at the Gurdwara Sri Guru Singh Sabha, wearing a saffron turban.
“It is minority appeasement, UK style,” said Mumbai-origin Shamsuddin Agha, president of the Indian Muslim Federation UK. “They are after votes, we have no objection to that, we come from a multicultural, multilingual country,” he told HT. “It’s the same idea behind what we call minority appeasement in India. British leaders will go to temples, gurdwaras and mosques for votes. It is good that they realise the importance of votes of the Indian community.”
May’s visit to the temple in London has evidently gladdened hearts. Her Conservative Party has been wooing the community since 2005, which resulted in a substantial section voting for the party in 2010 and 2015 elections
Her visit was hailed by the National Council of Hindu Temples, which made clear its preference for the party in a statement. The Conservative Party is seen to be closer to the influential HinduSikh lobbies opposed to the anticaste discrimination law in Britain, which is currently undergoing public consultation.
Meanwhile, Corbyn was introduced in the gurdwara by senior Labour leader Virendra Sharma, who held the Ealing, Southall seat with a majority of 18,760 in 2015.