83,000 Sikhs died fighting for Britain in world wars... Fox needs to apologise for bigoted views TAN DHESI

Military Crosses were won. Sikhs lived and died on the Western Front, just like troops born in Slough and Sunderland, Stirling and Swansea.

Their blood was spilled too at Gallipoli and on the Somme. Their families too received the telegrams informing them a beloved husband, son and brother would never return home.

Their bodies too were lost to the end of time, blown to smithereens by German shells or landmines.

These facts might be inconvenient for Fox’s distorted view, but they are verifiable facts, as photographs from the conflict testify. It is why a motion

I tabled in the last Parliament, which “appreciates the extraordinary bravery and sacrifice of Sikh soldiers in service of Great Britain, including during both World Wars”, was signed by 260-plus MPS from all parties – a record for that parliamentary session – including Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, the Father of the House and leaders of all opposition parties.

I wonder how Fox will react when he discovers that our campaign for a war memorial in Central London to honour turbaned Sikh soldiers has succeeded.

Plans for a statue in a very prominent place are to be unveiled shortly.

In Gravesend, Kent, thanks to a community campaign I led, there is already a statue to Squadron Leader Mahinder Singh Pujji DFC. He was a turbaned Sikh Hurricane pilot, who took on Hitler’s Luftwaffe and survived several crashes.

I applaud Sam Mendes for making a start by including at least one Sikh on the Western Front when in our arts and culture, and particularly our war movies, there is a noticeable lack of black and brown faces. Fox is guilty of inc war on ster tactics of D

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RANTING Actor Fox on TV this week FILM Sikh soldier in the war epic 1917 HERO WWII pilot Mahinder Singh Pujji

PRESENTATION Sikh VC recipient Gian Singh, second left, with Bhanbhagta Gurung and Umrao Singh at Buckingham Palace