Blitz Bureau
NEW DELHI: BRITISH lawmakers attended ‘In Conversation with the British Hindus’, an event hosted by Baroness Sandip Verma at the historic Churchill Hall in Parliament recently. The event that brought the British Hindu community and policymakers together in a spirit of dialogue, cooperation, and mutual respect was held on September 1, the first day after the UK Parliament reconvened following its summer recess, a report said.
Action for Harmony, an umbrella organisation dedicated to ensuring the voices of British Hindus are heard at the highest levels of government, organised the event with an aim to foster long-term cooperation and understanding between policymakers and one of the UK’s most vibrant and successful faith communities, a report in India Narrative (IN) highlighted.
Several UK MPs, peers and councillors attended the event, including Dawn Butler (Labour, Brent East), Bob Blackman (Conservative, Harrow East), Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour, Slough), Gagan Mohindra (Conservative, South West Hertfordshire), Seema Malhotra, Baggy Shankar, and Louie French. Baroness Verma, Lord Jitesh Gadhia, Lord Popat, and Lord Sewell.
More than 40 community leaders — representing over 65 per cent of the British Hindu diaspora — participated, with attendance of over 60 Hindu organisations. The organisations include major national bodies such as BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha, Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh UK, ISKCON UK and the Hindu Council Central England. A strong participation was witnessed from the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for British Hindus, reinforcing the event’s political significance and the shared aim to boost engagement between the Hindu community and Westminster.
During the event, Baroness Verma emphasised need for the community to stand together and for parliamentarians to be sensitive regarding its concerns. According to the India Narrative report, the Baroness stressed that genuine engagement not only requires understanding cultural and religious practices but also acknowledging the role of British Hindu community in the social, economic, and civic fabric of the nation.
