Leicester – Central News Hub

Braverman in Leicester to take stock of unrest

Lukman Patel, 31, of Homeway Road in Leicester, also appeared in court on Tuesday, where he pleaded not guilty to possession of an offensive weapon and racially aggravated harassment/alarm/distress…reports Asian Lite News

Home Secretary Suella Braverman met the police in Leicester to discuss and take stock of the recent communal unrest in the English city, the media reported.

In a statement on Thursday, a Leicestershire Police spokesperson said: “I can confirm the Home Secretary visited Leicester today and was briefed by Temporary Chief Constable Rob Nixon and other senior officers.

“We won’t be providing any further detail in relation to the meeting.”

According to the BBC, Braverman has been in regular contact with the chief constable, and that she visited to receive further updates on the disorder, and to thank police officers for their response.

Since the unrest first erupted on August 28 following an India-Pakistan cricket match, the police have arrested 47 people amid tensions involving mainly young men from sections of the Muslim and Hindu communities.

Major disorder broke out on the evening of September 17 following an earlier protest.

Meanwhile, a meeting of community leaders, councillors and local police on Wednesday evening decided upon a review to take place into recent unrest.

Speaking to the BBC, Leicester Mayor Peter Soulsby said on Thursday: “Last night’s meeting was very constructive and everyone there was determined to ensure that the recent disorder does not spoil relations in our city.

“My intention is to have a review of what led up to the events at the weekend, and also to seek some independent thoughts on how we all — council, police and communities — can learn from this, and what we can do at a local level to ensure it doesn’t happen again.”

However, an independent body is yet to be appointed to oversee the review. Three people have been charged so far in relation to the disorder.

Amos Noronha, 20, of Illingworth Road in Leicester, appeared in court on Monday, where he pleaded guilty to possession of an offensive weapon and was jailed for 10 months, the BBC reported.

Adam Yusuf, 21, of Bruin Street in Leicester, appeared in court on Tuesday, where he pleaded guilty to possession of a bladed article and was sentenced to a year in prison, suspended for 18 months, and was ordered to do 200 hours of unpaid work.

Lukman Patel, 31, of Homeway Road in Leicester, also appeared in court on Tuesday, where he pleaded not guilty to possession of an offensive weapon and racially aggravated harassment/alarm/distress.

He is expected to stand trial on November 11.

London Mayor Sadiq Khan has described the events in Leicester and Smethwick as “ugly” and called for solidarity.

“British Hindus and British Muslims have far more in common than that which divides us, and we should be eternally on our guard against extremist forces who seek to stoke up tensions between our communities for their own selfish ends,” he said.

Police have encouraged people to prepare for Navratri and Diwali as normal, and said a “visible and strengthened police presence will be there for all communities”.

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Hindu-Muslim scuffles lead to communal tension in Leicester

The weekend violence was the latest in a series of incidents that began after an India versus Pakistan Asia Cup cricket game on 28 August, reports Asian Lite News

Large numbers of police officers originally posted for the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II have been redeployed in Leicester, following violent clashes between Hindu and Muslim men over the weekend, which led to the arrest of 15 people, Leicester’s temporary Chief Constable Rob Nixon said.

The weekend violence was the latest in a series of incidents — including communally-provocative chants, mob clashes involving throwing bottles, and the tearing down of a temple flag — that began after an India versus Pakistan Asia Cup cricket game on 28 August.

After the weekend’s disruption, police and community leaders called for calm and restraint between the two communities in Leicester’s east end. Early Monday morning, the police had to resort to using their “stop and search” powers to “deter further disorder”.

Before this weekend’s flare-up, and after the cricket match, 27 people were arrested and consequently released on bail in separate incidents between Hindu and Muslim groups till 11 September.

According to reports, a procession was taken out by a group of Hindu men Saturday in east Leicester’s Green Lane Road. The street has several shops owned by Muslims and a Hindu temple near it. Reportedly, the group was walking through the street while chanting “Jai Shree Ram”.

Majid Freeman, a Leicester resident, video-recorded parts of the Saturday procession and the consequent flare-up. In one of his recordings, a fight erupts between two unidentified individuals, leading to police intervention.

In another video, glass bottles can be seen being thrown by the mob and the police asking people to “get back”.

The Guardian quoted Freeman explaining the events on Saturday. He said, “They [Hindus] were throwing bottles and all sorts”. “They [Hindus] were coming past our mosques, taunting the community and physically beating people up randomly.”

According to Freeman, the Muslim community then organised itself in response to the Hindu community’s march, “to defend themselves”.

However, Wasiq Wasiq, a PhD scholar at the Department of War Studies, King’s College London, published a video where unidentified individuals were destroying the flags of a Hindu temple.

A blame game between the two communities seems to have broken out. The sequence of events will only get clear after the Leicester Police completes its investigation.

Meanwhile, temporary Chief Constable Rob Nixon has appealed for calm after Saturday’s chaos.

Suleman Nagdi, from the Leicester-based Federation of Muslim Organisations, told the BBC, “We need calm — the disorder has to stop and it has to stop now. There are some very dissatisfied young men who have been causing havoc. We need to get the message out that this must end and try to do this through parents and grandparents talking to their sons.”

A statement from a group of Hindu and Jain temples of Leicester declared they were appalled by the violence, and called for immediate peace, stating that those responsible from within the community must be dealt with.

India condemns vandalising of temple

The Indian High Commission in London has strongly condemned the violence perpetrated against the Indian community in United Kingdom’s Leicester.

In its statement, the Indian High Commission strongly protested the violence and vandalising of a Hindu temple in Leicester. “We have strongly taken up this matter with the UK authorities and have sought immediate action against those involved in these attacks. We call on the authorities to provide protection to the affected people,” the statement from the Indian High Commission said.

The Indian High Commission has also urged the authorities to provide protection to those affected.