Protests and support rallies are set to take place on Wednesday and later in the week, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi embarks on his second bilateral visit to the UK in three years, ahead of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, with issues from sexual violence, the situation in Kashmir, violence against Dalits and religious minorities likely to figure prominently.

Among the groups that will hold protests will be CasteWatchUK and the South Asian Solidarity Group, which will hold a rally outside Downing Street. Several hundreds of people, particularly Dalits, are expected to join the rally from across the UK. “On the one hand Modi talks about bringing people together and of Bharat ki baat sab ke sath , but on the other hand his cohorts RSS storm troopers continue to brazenly defy the law unleashing violence on Dalits and religious minorities,” said a representative of CasteWatchUK.

“We are in favour of a united India, rather than anything that divides it and it is precisely for this reason we believe this aspect of India should not be undermined by a minority of divisive forces. Hindu nationalism must be curtained to avert India sliding towards wholesale dictatorship threatening the democratic fabric, rule of law and the unity of law,” the representative added.

Silent protest

A separate silent protest — with participants encouraged to wear white in solidarity — organised by a group of independent women will take place at Parliament Square on Wednesday afternoon to express “pain, sorrow, shock” and condemnation of the rapes in Kathua and Unnao, and beyond.

The Sikh Federation UK will also be holding a rally in Parliament Square on the treatment of Sikhs and the detention of British citizen Jagtar Singh Johal by Indian authorities.

NGO Action for Elephants will protest outside the Indian High Commission on Friday to draw attention to the “horrific treatment” of temple elephants in India.

A petition calling on the British government to ban a rally being organised by Lord Nazir Ahmed, a member of the House of Lords, on “Indian atrocities and human rights issues in Kashmir,” has received over 600 signatories, accusing him of pursuing a “Pakistani agenda” and being “hell bent upon escalating tensions in the UK.”

In support and against

A rally to “support PM Modi” and “Oppose Anti India forces” will take place at Parliament Square, also on Wednesday. Around 1,700 people are expected to attend the Bharat ki Baat event in central London on Wednesday afternoon, in which the Prime Minister will answer questions from the floor as well as collated from online submissions, and broadcast live.

Students abused

However, others who are not protesting, but hoping to raise the issue of the rapes and wider violence against women with the Prime Minister, say they have been subject to abuse and intimidation ahead of the visit.

A spokesperson for the National Indian Students and Alumni Union UK, who asked not to be named because of the level of online abuse members of the group had been subjected to, said that after the union and over 20 India societies from across UK universities had signed a letter urging Modi to initiate “immediate proceedings” in the Kathua and Unnao cases and action to demonstrate commitment to the well being of women, children and society, they had been pressurised to withdraw their support for the letter.

The spokesperson pointed out that the group was being harassed simply for raising an issue and asking questions (they have submitted a question on the issue to Bharat Ki Baat, the diaspora event being held in central London on Wednesday evening, which has courted questions from the public). “We are not against the Prime Minister, quite the contrary: we are welcoming him…we are exercising our democratic right to send in a question. What we are seeing with the backlash is that young Indian voices have been consistently suppressed for political motivated ends at either end of the political spectrum...”

Related Topics