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British Hindus’ APPG elects Bob Blackman as chair, outlines action plan

The Annual General Meeting (AGM) outlined a six-month action plan, with a follow-up plan to be discussed at future meetings.

The All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for British Hindus has been reconstituted following the 2024 UK general elections, with new members joining the group. The first Annual General Meeting (AGM) took place on September 11, 2024, in Parliament, where Bob Blackman, the former chairman, was re-elected to his position. The meeting saw cross-party participation, with eight MPs in attendance, including representatives from the Conservative, Labour, and Liberal Democrat parties.

At the AGM, the group reaffirmed its commitment to addressing the concerns of the British Hindu community. New parliamentary members were introduced, and the group discussed plans for the future. The Advocacy for British Hindus and Indians (ABHI) was confirmed as the group’s secretariat, responsible for advising on Hindu festivals, community activities, and supporting the APPG’s work.

The meeting also saw the election of four officers: Bob Blackman as Chairman, Navendu Mishra as Officer, Shivani Raja as Officer, and Luke Taylor as Officer. The AGM outlined a six-month action plan, with a follow-up plan to be discussed at future meetings. Additional members are expected to join the APPG in the coming days.

The attending MPs included Bob Blackman (Conservative), Luke Taylor (Liberal Democrat), Jim Dickson (Labour), Barry Gardiner (Labour), Navendu Mishra (Labour), Bobby Dean (Liberal Democrat), Shivani Raja (Conservative), and Deirdre Costigan (Labour).

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London: Met Police Urged to Work With Hindus to Tackle Hate Crimes

Expressing concerns that Hindu hate crime is not being effectively recorded by the Met services, the London Assembly on Thursday also called on the police to include the breakdown of hate crime by religion on its crime dashboard, reports Meenakshi Iyer

The London Assembly has unanimously passed a motion by a British Indian assembly member that calls on the Metropolitan Police to work with local Hindus by encouraging them to report hate crimes targeting their community.

Expressing concerns that Hindu hate crime is not being effectively recorded by the Met services, the assembly on Thursday also called on the police to include the breakdown of hate crime by religion on its crime dashboard.

“I am pleased that the London Assembly supports holding the Metropolitan Police to account so that they build the confidence held in them by our community,” Assembly member Krupesh Hirani said.

“Meat being thrown at school pupils, women wearing a red bindi mark on their forehead taunted for having a sniper mark… Sadly there has been a worrying rise in hate crimes faced by our community over the past year,” Hirani said, while introducing the motion at the floor of the assembly.

Hindus, forming 5.15 per cent of London’s population, are the second most likely religion to have been victims of religiously motivated hate crime, according to the 2023 Crime Survey for England and Wales.

The Met Police dashboard does not break down hate crime by religion, which makes it difficult to see the number of recorded crimes against Hindu Londoners.

“We need to see a better recording of hate crime… Hinduphobia is far too common but it’s not properly recorded. We cannot begin to tackle these issues unless it is properly recognised,” the Labour group member for Brent and Harrow constituencies said in a statement.

According to recent Home Office statistics, there were 291 hate crimes in 2022/2023 — accounting for three per cent of recorded by the police in England and Wales, against Hindus.

Hate crimes against Hindus went up from 58 in 2017-18 to 166 in 2020-21 — a rise of almost 200 per cent in just four years, Home Office data showed.

The years 2018-19 and 2019-20 saw 114 attacks each against the Hindus, and the crimes ranged from racial slurs and assaults to vandalism of properties and religious institutions.

The figures also showed that the number of racially or religiously aggravated offences recorded by the police by month increased since 2015.

In April this year, an independent, London-based think tank surveyed 988 Hindu parents and found that 51 per cent of them reported that their children had faced discrimination at schools in the UK.

Less than a month after riots rocked the city of Leicester last year after an India-Pakistan match, over 180 Hindu organisations and temples wrote an open letter to the then British Prime Minister Liz Truss, stating that they are “under siege”.

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General Bajwa meets Hindu community in Pakistan

General Bajwa said that monitories in Pakistan are equal citizens and it is the job of the state is to protect them, reports Asian Lite News

Pakistan Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa visited Nagarparkar tehsil of district Tharparkar and spent the day with troops and also met local Hindu community, The News reported.

The COAS was briefed by local commander on operational readiness of the formation.

While interacting with troops, the COAS appreciated their state of morale and motivation for fulfilment of assigned mission.

He also advised all troops to remain focused on their professional obligations and training for an effective response to counter any emerging challenge.

Later on, the COAS also met with local Hindu community. He said that monitories in Pakistan are equal citizens and it is the job of the state is to protect them, the report said.

The Hindu community acknowledged Pakistan’s efforts in bringing about secure environment for minorities in the country, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said.

They pledged that the Hindu community shall contribute with full zeal towards the economic prosperity of the country.

The Karachi Corps Commander and Pakistan Rangers (Sindh) Director General also accompanied the COAS during the visit.

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