LONDON: There has been a furious backlash to the UK government-commissioned “Bloom Review” from British Sikhs and British Hindus after both Sikh extremism and Hindu nationalism featured in a chapter called “Faith-based Extremism”, which describes “subversive or sectarian behaviours” in the UK. The report was commissioned when Boris Johnson was PM.
Colin Bloom, independent faith engagement adviser to the UK government, spent three years researching how the government should engage with faith groups in England, which led to the 159-page report, “Does Government ‘do God?’”. He devoted a chapter to “faith-based extremism” which, the report says, is “incompatible” with “the great liberal democracy that is Britain”.
Sikh extremism and Hindu nationalism featured alongside Islamist extremism, white supremacy, black nationalism and Buddhist nationalism. The report said Hindu nationalists — which it described as “people with Hindu political interests in India” — had targeted public figures in the run-up to the 2019 election and it also blamed them for the 2022 Leicester unrest. The review warned they might “destabilise British society”.
Trupti Patel, president of the Hindu Forum of Britain, said she had received objections to this part of the review from all over the world. “The reference to Hindus in Leicester is wrong as numerous reports have found that the violence was triggered by pro-ISIS anti-Hindu hate preachers spreading fake news. What is Hindu nationalism in the UK? What does that even mean? Standing up for your rights does not mean you are an extremist.”
A spokesperson for the Bloom Review said that “in almost every faith group there exists a minority of people who turn away from conventional peaceful religious teachings towards extremism and violence”. “Whether this is in superficial pursuit of gaining power and money or reflects more deeply held beliefs, these individuals use faith as an unacceptable justification to further anti-social aims,” the spokesperson said, adding that the review makes it clear that the majority of faith leaders and people of faith are “decent, honourable and generous people”.
Anil Bhanot, interfaith director at Hindu Council UK, said the review relied on “references to some articles from the BBC and the Guardian which many British Hindus – certainly the majority – see as part of the problem.”
Adit Kothari, founder of the Indic society, criticised Bloom for “equating Hindu nationalism to those strapping bombs to their chests”. He said the reference to the rise of Hindu nationalism in the UK is nothing but creation of an imaginary boogeyman.
“To talk about this imaginary boogeyman is imperative for the Left intelligentsia in order to draw Hindu nationalism as an evil occurring and then eventually draw a parallel of that with Rishi Sunak, who wears his Hindu identity proudly. We will see a rise in this discourse as we approach the next British general election,” he said.“I see this as nothing more than a monkey balancing act to equate the so-called Hindu nationalists to Islamic jihadists — without any hard evidence,” he added.
Jay Shah, a member of Friends of India Society International UK, said: “Some British Hindus campaigned against Labour in the 2019 election. Does that make them extremist? Hindus are peaceful people and they make up a negligible number of the UK prison population. They are not interested in violence. This is all in someone’s imagination.” He said dedicating 12 pages to Sikh extremism was also over the top. “The report itself is going to create disharmony in the community,” he said.
The report calls on the government to develop a more comprehensive understanding of subversive and sectarian Sikh extremist activity in the UK, referring to pro-Khalistan extremism, violent online content, individuals being threatened by aggressive Sikh activists and groups pursuing subversive agendas.
“They have vilified us in a high level way. This shows the government’s agenda to target Sikh activism,” said Deepa Singh, who runs Sikh Youth UK. “This is an attempt to defame our community, our activism, and our genuine causes.”
The Sikh Federation (UK) has issued an eight-page response to the review that says, “The review is an unbelievably biased and offensive narrative targeting Sikh organisations and gurdwaras. The Commission for Countering Extremism places the risk or activities from Sikhs as one of the lowest in the UK. It is clear the review has been written to appease the Indian authorities and is driven by the foreign policy agenda towards India.”
Lord Singh of Wimbledon said he felt that Sikh extremism “appears to have been magnified somewhat”, taking up 12 pages. “Recent government statistics on the religion of terrorists or extremists in British prisons indicate none who identify as Sikh,” he said.
Colin Bloom, independent faith engagement adviser to the UK government, spent three years researching how the government should engage with faith groups in England, which led to the 159-page report, “Does Government ‘do God?’”. He devoted a chapter to “faith-based extremism” which, the report says, is “incompatible” with “the great liberal democracy that is Britain”.
Sikh extremism and Hindu nationalism featured alongside Islamist extremism, white supremacy, black nationalism and Buddhist nationalism. The report said Hindu nationalists — which it described as “people with Hindu political interests in India” — had targeted public figures in the run-up to the 2019 election and it also blamed them for the 2022 Leicester unrest. The review warned they might “destabilise British society”.
Trupti Patel, president of the Hindu Forum of Britain, said she had received objections to this part of the review from all over the world. “The reference to Hindus in Leicester is wrong as numerous reports have found that the violence was triggered by pro-ISIS anti-Hindu hate preachers spreading fake news. What is Hindu nationalism in the UK? What does that even mean? Standing up for your rights does not mean you are an extremist.”
A spokesperson for the Bloom Review said that “in almost every faith group there exists a minority of people who turn away from conventional peaceful religious teachings towards extremism and violence”. “Whether this is in superficial pursuit of gaining power and money or reflects more deeply held beliefs, these individuals use faith as an unacceptable justification to further anti-social aims,” the spokesperson said, adding that the review makes it clear that the majority of faith leaders and people of faith are “decent, honourable and generous people”.
Anil Bhanot, interfaith director at Hindu Council UK, said the review relied on “references to some articles from the BBC and the Guardian which many British Hindus – certainly the majority – see as part of the problem.”
Adit Kothari, founder of the Indic society, criticised Bloom for “equating Hindu nationalism to those strapping bombs to their chests”. He said the reference to the rise of Hindu nationalism in the UK is nothing but creation of an imaginary boogeyman.
“To talk about this imaginary boogeyman is imperative for the Left intelligentsia in order to draw Hindu nationalism as an evil occurring and then eventually draw a parallel of that with Rishi Sunak, who wears his Hindu identity proudly. We will see a rise in this discourse as we approach the next British general election,” he said.“I see this as nothing more than a monkey balancing act to equate the so-called Hindu nationalists to Islamic jihadists — without any hard evidence,” he added.
Jay Shah, a member of Friends of India Society International UK, said: “Some British Hindus campaigned against Labour in the 2019 election. Does that make them extremist? Hindus are peaceful people and they make up a negligible number of the UK prison population. They are not interested in violence. This is all in someone’s imagination.” He said dedicating 12 pages to Sikh extremism was also over the top. “The report itself is going to create disharmony in the community,” he said.
The report calls on the government to develop a more comprehensive understanding of subversive and sectarian Sikh extremist activity in the UK, referring to pro-Khalistan extremism, violent online content, individuals being threatened by aggressive Sikh activists and groups pursuing subversive agendas.
“They have vilified us in a high level way. This shows the government’s agenda to target Sikh activism,” said Deepa Singh, who runs Sikh Youth UK. “This is an attempt to defame our community, our activism, and our genuine causes.”
The Sikh Federation (UK) has issued an eight-page response to the review that says, “The review is an unbelievably biased and offensive narrative targeting Sikh organisations and gurdwaras. The Commission for Countering Extremism places the risk or activities from Sikhs as one of the lowest in the UK. It is clear the review has been written to appease the Indian authorities and is driven by the foreign policy agenda towards India.”
Lord Singh of Wimbledon said he felt that Sikh extremism “appears to have been magnified somewhat”, taking up 12 pages. “Recent government statistics on the religion of terrorists or extremists in British prisons indicate none who identify as Sikh,” he said.