by SHOAIB DANIYAL
Though most UK Indians do not endorse Hindutva, its supporters have successfully represented it as the sentiment of the Hindu community to policy makers.
“If you want the Hindu vote, it’s not cheap,” Shital Manga said with a determined smile. “For the first time, [British] Hindus have put out a manifesto.”
She added: “The Hindu vote is not for free.”
Manga was speaking to Scroll in a chai shop in Leicester – the first city in the UK to have a non-White majority. Dominated by South Asians, most of them Gujaratis, Leicester had seen communal disturbances in 2022 following an India-Pakistan cricket match. There were brawls and hostile gangs marching through neighbourhoods as well as an attack on a temple.
The incident had shaken up the United Kingdom. While violence based on race was a familiar part of its recent history, the UK was unused to what residents of the subcontinent would instantly recognise as a Hindu-Muslim riot.
Manga belonged to InsightUK, a shadowy, yet belligerentHindutva organisation in the UK. In the run-up to Thursday’s UK election, Insight had co-authored a “Hindu manifesto” urging British MP candidates to sign on to a charter of demands in order to attract Hindu voters. It also organised a “Hindu husting” in several constituencies across the UK, which featured debates between MP candidates on themes that matter to the Hindu community.
However, Insight’s role has not been restricted to electioneering. In Leicester, for example, it had played a key role presenting a Hindutva view on the violence, with its narratives being amplified by the controversial Indian Hindutva website, OpIndia.
The Hindutva ideology as promoted by India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party is not new to the UK. But people such as Manga and organisations such as InsightUK have taken it to new heights,openly pushing Hindutva into Britian’s politics with a new confidence.
The influence of these Hindutva organisations has allowed them to lobby politicians for policies that fit their ideology, from moving motions against “Hinduphobia” in British societyto blocking national anti-caste legislation. This success is all the more remarkable given the small population of British Hindus, with only 1.6% of the UK identifying with the faith.
The Hindu Manifesto
The Hindu manifesto, presented by a total of 66 communityorganisations, has a set of demands that prospective British MPs were urged to endorse. The programme has had some success: 24 candidates backed it. Some of the demands are banal, related to immigration of priests and healthcare for British Hindus.
However, it also wades into more controversial topics. The manifesto claims £117 million has been “provided to UK Muslims for protective security funding” and asks for a similar allocation for the “security and protection of temples”. As part of this, the manifesto highlights the 2022 Leicester riots in which a temple was attacked.
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